How To Train Vikings To Trust Dragons
by Demon4life2014
Summary: Berk is the only place where Dragons are welcome, where Vikings even ride the dragons. But what about the rest of the world? Are the Hero's of Berk truly the only Dragon Riders? Can they convince the rest of the world to trust Dragons? Or will the age long battle to slay the beasts continue on?
1. The Dragon Trainer

**Greetings, new and old readers! I bet you thought I was gone, since this is the first time in a long while I've actually posted something on here instead of read other peoples work.** **Well, I'm not dead yet, and now I'm back with a somewhat new story.**

**This is a story I started probably about a year ago, so bare with me if it's a bit rough at first since I just recovered the files and everything. Gave it a quick glance and fixed some grammar errors before deciding it will have to do for now. But, seeing as how the new How To Train Your Dragon 2 is set to release next month, I decided why not.**

**Give you all something to take up your time until we get to see that new movie.**

**So, without further ado, I present to you my newish story, and I hope you all enjoy and remember to review afterwards.**

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You know, living on Berk, you sometimes don't realize that we may not be the only ones who get along with dragons. I mean, there are plenty of people in the world who still want them dead, unfortunately.

That's why it came as a real surprise to everyone when we heard about someone else training dragons.

Being the Dragon Trainer of Berk, I decided to send a letter out to this fellow trainer. Perhaps we can get more people to understand that dragons aren't mean, ferocious beasts that want to kill everyone.

"Hey, what's that sound?" Snotlout asked as we all tried to continue training our dragons in the dragon academy.

"What sound?" Astrid asked asked as she looked up from Stormfly, who she had been talking to.

"That sounds like...a Boneknapper dragon. We haven't seen one of those since Gobber took us all out to find the one chasing him." Fishlegs said excitedly as he hopped up onto Meatlug, and I didn't have to ask to know he wanted to go investigate.

"Awesome, let's go snatch it!" Tuffnut exclaimed as I sighed, knowing I was going to have to stop them from going after the dragon.

"You up for investigating, Toothless?" I asked and smiled at the big grin my Night Fury dawned before I hopped onto his back to lead the other five off.

I led everyone up into the sky in search of the mysterious dragon, but after that first roar we didn't hear anything.

Well, we didn't hear anything, but apparently Fishlegs saw something out towards one of our fishing boats.

"What is that thing?" Bucket's shouts reached us as I watched him and Mulch scramble to pull in the nets, unable to see anything anymore though.

"It was covered in bones from head to tail." Mulch called up to us as I turned to Fishlegs, who let out a triumphant ha at the fact that he was right.

It was about then that a dragon burst from the water on the other side of the boat, carrying the fishnets in it's boney jaws.

"Boneknapper!" Fishlegs shrieked as it zoomed towards us.

"Don't attack it!" I yelled at Snotlout as he ordered Hookfang to fire at the dragon.

"But it's attacking us! And it has our fishnets!" Snotlout argued before Toothless and I went after the dragon that was now heading towards shore with our nets.

"Is someone in need of some assistance?" I glanced around in shock at the unfamiliar voice, turning to Astrid to see her searching for the voice as well. "Oi, dragon riders! You're not too used to seeing Boneknappers, are ya?" I looked up at the sound of the voice again to see a second Boneknapper diving down towards the one escaping with our nets.

"I thought Boneknappers were rare." Astrid commented before I noticed there was someone riding on the back of the second dragon before the person leaped from it's back, turning to Fishlegs when he let out a startled cry.

"Sorry." Fishlegs said with a sheepish chuckle before I turned my attention back to the Boneknappers, just in time to see the other rider land on the back of the fleeing dragon.

**Third Person POV**

"Calm down, they're not going to hurt you." The new trainer assured as the Riders of Berk watched the trainer put a hand on the snout of the dragon to try and calm it.

Hiccup watched in astonishment as the Boneknapper calmed down at the mere touch of the trainer's hand, wondering where this new viking had come from.

Hiccup directed Toothless to head down when the new trainer led the rogue dragon down to the ground, the other Boneknapper following as well.

"There we go, now drop the net." Hiccup dismounted Toothless and walked over to the new viking who had such a way with the Boneknappers, the other five following behind him, before he noticed something.

"Wait, a girl controlled a Boneknapper?!" Snotlout burst out before he was hit over the head by Astrid for the sexist comment.

"Better than you with your Monstrous Nightmare over there. I saw you trying to control it." The girl spoke up as she scratched the chin of the adolescent Boneknapper. "No more attacking ships, that's bad." The girl reminded as Hiccup realized that these two dragons belonged to the stranger.

"You train Boneknappers." Hiccup said in realization as the girl turned to him, letting him get a good look at her finally.

The new trainer's eyes were a bright emerald green, a scar running over her left eye. Her skin was tan, and her hair a light brown. She looked like she could have belonged to their tribe, except he knew for a fact she didn't.

"I train two Boneknappers. This is Zu, and this is Pythius." The girl said as she patted the two dragons on the snouts, earning a bump from her main dragon Zu.

"Since when do people get two dragons? That's so unfair." Snotlout commented before earning another smack from Astrid.

"Who are you? We've never seen you around here before." Hiccup said as the girl mounted Zu, Pythius already heading off into the sky once more.

"I'm a dragon trainer. I don't stay in one place too long." The girl said before heading off after Pythius, Zu letting out a loud roar as Hiccup turned back to the rest of the group.

It was later that night when Hiccup brought up the news about the stranger to his father that he learned her name. "Ah, that sounds like Thorunn the Skull Splitter, Madguts the Murderous' daughter." Gobber spoke up from where he sat in front of the fire, Stoick nodding in agreement.

"She's heir to the Murderous tribe. She should be at home though, not out riding dragons." Stoick said before going to continue on with his nightly rituals.

"So, she's the other dragon trainer then?" Hiccup asked as he sat down opposite the fire, Toothless sitting down right next to him.

"It would seem so, but why she wants to train Boneknappers, I cant tell you." Gobber sat before Toothless nudged Hiccup to try and get his dinner.

On the other side of the island the two Boneknappers landed on the beach, the heir to the Murderous tribe climbing off of Zu to check her map to see where she was. "Alright Zu, we need one more bone for Pythius. Let's find it." Thorunn stated as she looked at map that had almost everywhere checked off, except for Berk.

"So, you want to try to find Madguts the murderous daughter. Why?!" Snotlout questioned loudly as the dragon riders were called to the academy by Hiccup.

"Madguts is vicious and destructive." Ruffnut commented as she turned to Tuffnut with a broad grin.

"First one to find her gets to meet Madguts!" Tuffnut announced excitedly as Astrid sighed at how the twins acted, turning her attention back to Hiccup.

"What's the real reason you want to meet her, Hiccup?" Astrid asked as she tried to ignore how loud the twins were being.

"I just think that if we have more riders, maybe we can get more Vikings outside of Berk to realize that dragons aren't terrible, bloodthirsty beasts. Maybe more people will be willing to accept them like us." Hiccup explained as he patted Toothless on the head when the Night Fury nudged him.

It was about then that the sound of a Boneknappers roar reached the dragon academy.

"Woah, Pythius calm down!" Thorunn yelled down to the excited dragon that had caught scent of the last bone it needed for it's armor.

The viking paled when the dragon instead dived down towards the village on the island. Almost immediately, the screams of terrified vikings began before Thorunn directed Zu to stop the excited dragon.

"What chaos! I love it!" Tuffnut commented as the riders of Berk watched the chaos from the skies until Hiccup reminded them they had to stop the Boneknapper.

"Stop it, don't help it." Hiccup scolded the twins when they just stood by and watched the Boneknapper tear through buildings in search of it's final bone.

"What is going on?!" Hiccup paled at the sound of his father coming in on Thornado, knowing that he wouldn't be too happy to see a Boneknapper destroying the village.

"No! You're not getting my belt buckle again you bag of bones!" Gobber yelled angrily as the Boneknapper tore through his shop in search of it's bone, sending Gobber flying when the man attacked it.

"Pythius!" Hiccup looked up to see a white blur as Zu dived down towards the other Boneknapper, it's rider leaping from the saddle at the last moment to land on Pythius before the dragon went crazy, taking off into the sky.

"We have to stop that dragon." Hiccup announced to the riders that were around him at the time. "Go Toothless." Hiccup said before the Night Fury took off after the dragon.

"Calm down!" Hiccup sped up at the sound of the Trainer trying to get control of the dragon that was now speeding towards the pillars of rock jutting out of the ocean.

"Hang on! We'll calm it down!" Hiccup called to the girl on the Boneknappers neck, just then seeing the chink in the bone armor of the dragon.

"He's after his final bone!" Thorunn called back before seeing that Pythius was heading towards a pillar of stone, paling for a second when she realized it was a low hanging rock. "Zu!" Thorunn called before leaping from Pythius' back, falling down towards the ocean as the familiar roar of a protective dragon sounded.

"Toothless, get her!" Hiccup ordered before the Night Fury dived down towards the falling trainer, Zu chasing after the other Boneknapper instead of catching his trainer.

Just as the heir to the Murderous tribe was about to hit the water she was caught in the arms of Toothless, who looked down at her to make sure she was alright.

"Well, guess it's a good thing to have a fast dragon with you." Thorunn commented before seeing Pythius land on top of one of the pillars of stone, Toothless taking off to drop her on the pillar.

Hiccup watched as Thorunn landed on the stone next to her dragons, Pythius holding a bone in it's massive jaws. "He just wanted his last bone." Hiccup murmured as he watched the new trainer set the bone into place for her dragon, a second later the complete dragon letting out an thundering roar that could shake all of Berk.

"There you go, bud." Thorunn said before the dragon bumped it's head into her, trying to show it's appreciation of helping finish his armor.

"Wow, you help Boneknappers finish their armor." Fishlegs commented as he landed with Meatlug, the other trainers hovering since the pillar wasn't very big.

"Sort of. They get the scent, I set the bone." Thorunn said with a shrug before Hiccup walked up to her, Toothless right behind him protectively.

"I want a Boneknapper. Those things are destructive." Ruffnut commented with a huge grin.

"It's nice to see there's other dragon trainers out there. I'm Hiccup." Hiccup greeted with a small smile at the Boneknapper trainer.

"Dude, that's such a sad way to try to get her attention." Snotlout commented before Astrid smacked him.

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**Well, I know it could be better, but I hope this did serve well for the opening chapter in what I hope to be a very popular story. Oh and for those of you who might not know of the Boneknapper's, they were in one of the shorts so you could either watch the short, or find their wiki page. Thought, why not since we only really get to see the more common dragons.**

**Anyways, enough of my rambling. I hope you all enjoyed the first chapter of this new story, more to come since I've already prewritten the first few chapters, and I hope to here from you all in the form of reviews since I'm always happy to here what yall think.**


	2. Joining the Dragon Academy

**Greetings once more readers! New and Old, I've like to let you know that I try my hardest for the task of updating daily, due to the fact that I type about 130 words per minute, so hopefully the chapters will continue to roll out this fast. It also kind of helps having the whole How To Train Your Dragon Soundtrack to listen to while I write, gets the ideas pumping.**

**Anyways, I wish to thank those of you who have been reading so far, I especially loved seeing how within minutes of posting the story it swarmed with views. Love seeing how after my apparent year and a half absence of writing, I still have people reading.**

**Anyways, I hope you all enjoy this next chapter, and please do me the honor of reviewing afterwards.**

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"I'm sorry about Pythius' destructiveness. He got excited about his new bone." Thorunn explained to Stoick as the Riders of Berk waited outside the great hall, watching the vikings fix up the village.

"Well, you can make it up by helping with repairs." Stoick said after a few minutes of silence to think over what he wanted to say.

"Sure, I'll get to work." Thorunn agreed before heading back outside to see the waiting Riders of Berk, raising an eyebrow at them before turning to her two dragons.

"So how is it you get to have two dragons, and everyone else only gets one?" Snotlout asked as he folded his arms over his chest, glancing at the Boneknappers.

"I only have one dragon really, and that's Zu. Pythius is just along for the bones." Thorunn said before taking notice of the diverse range of dragons around. A Monstrous Nightmare, a Gronkle, a Deadly Nadder, a Hideous Zippleback and the extremely rare Night Fury? She's only seen the more common dragons, not including her extremely rare Boneknappers.

"So, that's why you're not back with your tribe? You've been helping them with their bone armor." Fishlegs summarized as he looked over Pythius curiously, surprised it was so docile considering earlier he was in a frenzy for his last bone.

"Yeah, that's why I'm not with my tribe. Now, I've got to go fix the damage Pythius did." Thorunn said before heading off quickly, earning a curious glance from Hiccup from how she avoided the subject so quickly.

"I call dibs!" Snotlout announced loudly before Tuffnut began arguing with him, Astrid looking ready to hit both for wanting to run after the new trainer.

"Will you grow up ever?" Astrid asked as she threatened to smack Snotlout over the head for the umpteenth time in the past two days.

"Aw, I get it. You're jealous. Don't worry, plenty of love to go around." Snotlout said as he opened his arms wide, making a few kissing noises.

"Stormfly." Astrid said simply before the Deadly Nadder shot spikes at Snotlout and pinned him to the house that was behind him.

Tuffnut laughed mockingly at Snotlout before he was pinned to the house as well by another round of spikes.

While the fighting continued Hiccup went off with Toothless to practice their flying, watching the repairs from the sky.

He was surprised by how quickly Madguts the Murderous' daughter was working with the help of her dragons. Normally he saw older viking men work that fast, not...teenage viking girls.

"Does he know I can see him?" Thorunn asked Gobber as she helped repair his house, nodding towards the sky where Toothless quickly fled from her vision.

"Ah, he's of no harm to ya. He's probably just curious that there's another dragon trainer. Not many of those outside of Berk." Gobber stated before Pythius brought over more supplies for the repairs.

"Actually, there is one other, my father." Thorunn revealed before focusing back on repairing the blacksmith's house.

"What do you think, bud? Maybe there's more people like us out there." Hiccup said as Toothless looked up at him, curiosity in the dragon's big green eyes.

"Wait, you want to invite her to join the Dragon academy?" Fishlegs asked later that night when he met up with Hiccup in the great hall.

"Maybe we'll have a greater chance of getting more tribes to see how dragons aren't terrible. Besides, she knows how to train Boneknappers. That's pretty useful, Fishlegs." Hiccup reminded as he pushed the barrel of fish in front of Toothless, watching as the dragon dug right in.

"Yeah, if we knew where more Boneknappers were maybe." Fishlegs stated before hearing the sound of dragons on the roof.

"Your father must have taught you craftsmanship. You worked faster than my own son on our one roof." Stoick's voice rung in before he opened the doors to the hall, walking in with the heir to the Murderous tribe.

"It's nothing, I've learned to work faster with my dragons helping me." Thorunn said simply before Stoick slapped her on the back in appreciation, causing her to stumble forward a bit with the force.

"Well, you're welcome in Berk as long as you like. Just try to keep your dragons under control." Stoick stated before going off to attend to his own duties as chief of the tribe.

"Hey Thorunn, you're already on my father's good side." Hiccup commented as she turned to see him and Fishlegs by the fire with Toothless.

"I've been on his good side really since I was two, when my father brought me to Berk for the first time." Thorunn said with a shrug before the doors behind her opened and Zu walked in, Pythius behind him. "No, outside guys!" Thorunn ordered quickly as she tried to stop the two protective dragons.

"It's alright, plenty of dragons come in here each day. They'll be fine in here." Hiccup assured before seeing the stare he was getting from Fishlegs.

"Really? That's how you're trying to get on her good side?" Fishlegs asked quietly before Thorunn directed her dragons to lay down and get comfortable.

"So, this is where all the dragons have been coming then that haven't been getting killed? I can see why they'd like it here. They're safe." Thorunn commented as she sat down beside Zu, who wrapped his boney tail around his rider.

"Killed? Who would kill dragons? There's supposed to be other trainers." Fishlegs said as he silently thanked the gods that Meatlug was safe in Berk with him.

"Trainer." Thorunn corrected as she rested her chin on the palm of her hand. "I've been to most of the other tribe's islands recently, and everyone else is still fighting with the dragons. That's why I was a little curious when I saw other people riding when I stopped Pythius yesterday. Thought ya were gonna kill him." Thorunn said as the adolescent dragon sat down beside the fire, opposite Toothless.

"So...there's no other dragon trainers? You're the only other trainer?" Hiccup questioned, surprised since he thought others would at least try to understand dragons weren't all bad.

"Not exactly. My father owns a Stealth Dragon which he uses only for raids and defense. Otherwise he leaves the poor thing locked up." Thorunn grumbled as she patted her dragon on the spikes of his tail, hearing the soft purring growl Zu gave out in comfort.

"So much for other trainers." Fishlegs muttered as he turned back to Hiccup, who looked genuinely upset about the news that other tribes were still killing dragons.

"Thorunn, why aren't you out helping others realize dragons aren't all bad?" Hiccup asked as he turned back to see her petting her dragon.

"Because everywhere I go, vikings try to kill my dragons. Then, I found a letter someone sent to my father before I left the tribe. Of course, my father always dismisses the idea of helping others, but I don't." Thorunn said before realizing how late it was getting by the way Zu was falling asleep, and Pythius already asleep.

"Hey, Hiccup. I need to get home. My parents don't like me out late, remember." Fishlegs reminded as he rose from his seat to go back to his own house.

"We should probably be going too. Come on, Toothless." Hiccup said as he stood up, then realizing the intent stare that the Night Fury had on the Boneknapper opposite him.

Toothless' eyes shifted to his rider before following out of the Great Hall.

The next day when Hiccup went to see if Thorunn would like to join the Berk Dragon Academy, he found she wasn't at the Great Hall any longer, then catching the sound of Boneknappers out in the village.

"Little more, Zu." Thorunn called up to the dragon as it air lifted supplies with the help of Pythius, dropping them right in front of their trainer before she could tell them to.

Thorunn glanced up at the two with an appreciative nod as they seemed to talk between themselves with their own dragon tongue. Thorunn had still been opening up the supplies when she noticed their sudden silence, looking up to see Hiccup swoop down on the back of his Night Fury.

"Something I can help you with?" Thorunn asked as Hiccup dismounted Toothless, walking over to her in a manner that one could almost consider cautious. Then again, who could blame him what with her two protective Boneknapper dragons watching his every step.

"Actually, yeah." Hiccup said a bit cautiously as he approached the girl, hoping she would take their offer of joining the academy. "We were actually wondering if you'd...you know join us." Hiccup said as Thorunn looked up from her work at him in curiosity.

"Join you? What do you mean by join you?" Thorunn asked cautiously, since in her travels since she left home, many people had tried to get her to settle down in their villages and help them.

But, then again those people all wanted dragons dead. At least here the dragons were welcomed and even trained by some of the local vikings.

"Join our Dragon Academy." Hiccup clarified as his gaze drifted to the protective eyes of her Boneknapper above them. "We could really use your help, I mean. You...you're good with dragons just like us. Maybe we can all work to try to get everyone else to see that Dragons aren't all bad." Hiccup explained as he motioned towards her own dragons and Toothless for emphasis.

Thorunn was silent for a few minutes, her gaze examining and critical to the point where Hiccup actually thought she was going to up and leave then and there. "Well, you may just be the first viking I've heard speak some sensible words about dragons." Thorunn spoke up finally, folding her arms over her chest as Hiccup looked at her in slight confusion.

"Uh..." Hiccup was at a loss for words, fidgeting where he stood a bit as Thorunn dropped her arms from her chest, gaze turning soft as she realized how intimidating she could look at times.

"Every other Viking I've met has only wanted Dragons dead. Mount the heads on pikes! Toss the bodies in the blue, burn their bones and sew their scales into armor. That sort of thing. You though...you're the first I've ever heard say something genuinely nice about them." Thorunn clarified as Zu dropped down to be at her side, Pythius dropping down beside Toothless.

Hiccup felt a bit sickened by Thorunn's revelation of how the rest of the world saw dragons, not having thought it was still that bad out there. "Well, it's true. They're not just bloodthirsty, savage beasts that need to be killed on sight." Hiccup spoke up as his gaze went from this new girl in front of him to the three dragons around them. "They can be gentle, caring even." Hiccup said as he patted Toothless on the head. "They can even be your best friend when no one else is there for you." Hiccup murmured as his eyes locked with Toothless's.

Thorunn watched the sight in silence before feeling Zu nudge her with one of his horns, placing a hand on his snout. "I think we can be of help here then. What you're saying, it's exactly what I've been trying to tell other vikings since I met Zu. You are the only other sane viking I've met since Zu and I set off to try and help other dragons." Thorunn admitted as the Boneknapper in question nudged her again, wrapping one large wing around her as it's snout buried against her neck.

Hiccup's eyes widened a bit at the sight of affection that Zu showed towards this viking girl, not having seen anything like it aside from maybe Toothless licking him. She really was an amazing trainer, and it will definitely help their cause having her with them and spreading the good word about dragons. He stifled a laugh when he watched Zu lick Thorunn, covering her with slobber in the same way Toothless found necessary to do to him.

As if finding this a challenge, Hiccup soon found himself on the ground as Toothless preceded to lick him fervently, Thorunn laughing from where she stood with her own Dragon as Hiccup tried to get the Night Fury to stop.

"You get used to the Dragon slobber before you know it, don't worry." Thorunn advised as Hiccup finally sat up, having pushed Toothless off after about his twentieth lick of his person.

"Yeah, I don't think so." Hiccup said as he wiped the slobber off his face, glancing up at the laughing trainer opposite him, and before he knew it he too was laughing since she seemed completely unfazed by how her own Boneknapper had covered her with slobber.

Nearby Fishlegs and Astrid were watching from atop their own dragons, trying to figure out what was going on since one minute the two were having a discussion, and the next they were being slobbered on by their dragons. "That's...I don't even know how to describe it." Fishlegs muttered at the sight of the two vikings now covered in Dragon drool.

"All I want to know is if she's joining the academy or not. If not, then she might as well just leave already." Astrid commented as she watched the two for a few more seconds before turning to Fishlegs, noticing the way his lips were pursed together and his face reddening. "What?" Astrid asked before Fishlegs burst out laughing.

"You...you're jealous, aren't you?" Fishlegs asked after he had some time to calm down, yelping when Astrid punched him roughly in the shoulder.

"I am not, I just...I don't know. I don't trust her." Astrid grumbled as she folded her arms across her chest, examining this new girl that just so happened to show up when Hiccup was so fervent on finding other people to help spread word that dragons weren't bad.

"Because you're jealous." Fishlegs teased lightly after a few moments of silence, lips quivering up into a smile since he knew Astrid. She didn't like it when any viking that just so happened to be a female came within earshot of Hiccup.

And now there was this new skilled dragon trainer who was going to be around, he shouldn't be surprised of Astrid's reaction.

"I am not!" Astrid snapped before ordering Stormfly to attack Fishlegs, the husky teen yelping before taking off on his own Gronkle to escape the impending pain Astrid had in mind for him.

After their bout of laughter, Hiccup turned to Thorunn, noticing the way she was leaning against Zu. "Um, so anyways, does this mean that you...you know... might be willing to join us and help us try to get people to see that Dragon's aren't all that bad?" Hiccup asked nervously as his gaze flickered between Thorunn and her Boneknapper's protective gaze on her.

Silence fell for a few minutes, and Hiccup was almost ready to head back to the arena in thought that Thorunn wouldn't help them, before she took a step forward, in front of him before he knew it. "You need someone to help people realize that these guys are some of the most amazing creatures on the planet, then by all mean's I'm here to help." Thorunn advised as Hiccup dawned a happy smile at the news.

"That's great. We could really use your help." Hiccup murmured as he realized just how happy he was over having someone else around to help him and the others with the dragons.

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**I certainly hope that chapter was a bit more up to standards, most of it was written nearly two years ago after all. All I really did was grammar fixes again, now that I have a computer that doesn't purposely alter my documents to include grammatical errors.**

**Anyways, thank you all once again for reading. Always a pleasure to know you are entertained by my writing. More chapters to come, and I cant wait to see if yall review.**


	3. Getting Used To Berk

**Greetings yet again, loyal readers. First, I'd like to start off by saying thank you to all who have been reading, always love to check my traffic on my profile to see it's getting some people reading it.**

**As for my second bit, I'd like to point out that this more so follows the movies. Yes, I have seen the series, but it's been quiet a while so if I'm mentioning stuff from both it's probably out of habit since I know many of you probably don't even know who Madguts the Murderous is, he's from the books. Apologies if I confuse anyone.**

**Anyways, on to the chapter! Hope you all enjoy, and always remember to review!**

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**Thorunn POV**

"Ya can stay here fo' whil' ya' here." The chubby Viking Gobber advised me as he showed me to an abandoned house just at the edge of town, Stoick having been too busy to show me here himself apparently.

The place looks like it hasn't been touched in a long time, but I'm not really bothered by it. I've been living off the land for so long with Zu that by this point, anything looks good.

"Already a bed inside fo' ya, little missy. Need anytin mo', just give me a hollar. Or ya could ask Hiccup, wherever he is now I mean." Gobber said as he scratched the back of his neck, obviously looking out of place before remembering to hand the key over to me.

"Thank you." I said politely before he began to amble away, leaving me to myself since Zu and Pythius were already exploring the area around. I gave a quick glance at the setting sun before heading inside, leaving the door open for Zu and Pythius for when they choose to come back.

A thick layer of dust covered much of the place, except for where it had been kicked around by people bringing the bed and meager supplies in for me. These Vikings sure work fast, I've only been here for maybe two, three days tops.

I walked over to the firepit in the middle of the room, crouching down to light it, but before I had a chance a purple orb shot past me, lighting it in an instant as I glanced back to see Hiccup in the doorway, Toothless right behind him. "Uh...sorry about that. He does that every night at home for us, guess he's used to it." Hiccup said as he ran a hand over the back of his neck, but was shoved forward seconds later when my Boneknapper forced his way into the house.

"Zu, you can't shove other people around like you do with me." I reminded my dragon as he curled up next to the fire, gaze flickering from me to the viking near the doorway. "Sorry about him, something you need though?" I asked as I turned my attention back to Hiccup, watching as Toothless wandered away from the door outside.

"Was just checking to see if you needed anything. I mean, I know this isn't anything like back home with your Dad..." Hiccup trailed off as my mood went a it more sour at the mention of my old home, turning to face Zu now instead.

"You're right, it's not like home. Here, dragon's are welcome wherever, back in the Murderous Tribe, they're either killed, or taken prisoner by my father to be used as weapons like his own Stealth Dragon." I muttered as I tried not to think of that poor creature chained up every day unless he needs it for a raid.

Silence fell for a few seconds before I felt a hand on my shoulder, glancing back in shock a bit since not only did people never lay a hand on me, but I didn't even notice Hiccup had made his way across the room. "I'm sorry." Hiccup murmured sincerely as I took a step away from him, never one for close proximity with humans.

"Don't be, it's not like you're the reason Vikings hate dragons. The opposite in fact. You're like me, you want to help dragons." I said as I gave a glance towards Zu who nodded his head in his direction, his way of saying come here since I was sitting with him by the fire within seconds.

"Well, look at Toothless. They're not all bad. I mean, I'm better friends with a Dragon than I am with any other vikings." Hiccup said as I watched Toothless nudge his hand before strolling inside and taking a seat opposite us, green eyes landing on me in the same way I've grown used to dragons looking at me.

That look was one that Zu had given me many times, a look of understanding. Acceptance. Trust. Granted, I've never met a Night Fury before, so I wasn't expecting him to already trust me, but it still was a welcome sight whenever a dragon laid it's eyes upon me like that.

"Zu has been my Best Friend and only family since the day I met him, so trust me when I say I understand that feeling." I muttered before turning to Zu as he nuzzled his face against my shoulder, scratching the underside of his chin for him as he began to relax a bit better.

Hiccup sat down next to Toothless, looking a bit uncomfortable for a few seconds before he finally spoke. "How...how long have you been traveling?" Hiccup asked as my gaze went from him to Zu once more.

"Six years now. I...I couldn't stand watching how vikings treated dragon's any longer, so I left with Zu. I went back a few months ago, no one saw me. I dropped in to see if things changed, and I found this." I said as I reached into my vest to pull out the unmarked letter that Zu and I intercepted before it could reach my father.

Hiccup's eyes seemed to widen for a second before I handed the letter off to him. "I wrote this." Hiccup revealed as I leaned back into Zu's body a bit more, glancing at the letter since now that I looked more closely, there was a Hooligan Tribe mark on the back of the parchment that I hadn't noticed before now. "I thought it was going to someone else though, I didn't know you were the trainer we heard about." Hiccup said as our gaze met over the fire, and the look of astonishment was obvious as his eyes were green.

"The one and only outside of your little home here, Hiccup." I muttered, looking away as I tried to keep the sorrow out of my tone at the idea. I looked up when Zu nudged me, forcing a smile at him before he pressed his forehead to my own.

**Hiccup POV**

I noticed the sadness in her tone from the moment the words left her mouth, wanting to speak up to remind her that she wasn't alone now, but then I was greeted with a sight I'd never seen before done with anyone aside from a mother or father dragon with their newborns.

Zu pressed his forehead to Thorunn's, letting out a low purr as she herself actually let a small smile play on her lips at the gesture.

I never thought Dragons could be so affectionate with us before. These two, Thorunn and Zu, they've got a stronger bond than even Toothless and I.

The two parted after a few seconds, and Thorunn looked back at me, looking much more relaxed after her exchange with Zu. She opened her mouth to speak, but at that moment Pythius burst through the door, holding a fishing net full of cod in his jaws. "Pythius!" Thorunn chastised as she jumped up to stop him, and I couldn't stop the laugh that bubbled up at the sight.

"It's alright, he can have it if he really wants it Thorunn." I assured her as I stood up to help her take the net from the Boneknapper's teeth.

"I can't let him think though that this sort of behavior is okay. We're guests in this village, Pythius. No stealing." Thorunn reprimanded as he dropped the net and stomped across the room before settling down between Toothless and Zu so they all three had their own seats around the fire.

"Really, it's fine. Don't worry yourself about it." I assured once more as Thorunn looked up from the nets to me, looking like she was having an internal debate about listening to me or not about the nets so instead I took the nets from her hands and dragged them over into the kitchen.

"This will be the last time he does this, I promise." Thorunn said as she followed me, running her fingers though her hair now as I opened nets up.

"Well, how's about I help you out then since it's your first night in our village officially." I offered as I went over to the fire and grabbed the roasting stick, walking back to where she was standing. "I know you travel a lot, but you ever try seasoned cod? I know I don't look like much of a viking, but I can cook pretty good." I offered with a small smile as I began to put a few of the cod on the roasting stick, glancing up to see she once again looked like she was having an internal debate with herself.

"Just this once, I guess I'll let you help us. These three look like they're having fun anyways." Thorunn said as I glanced to the dragons who were grumbling and making many other noises in what I could only guess was their own language.

"Can only hope they're not talking about us." I joked as I brought the roasting stick back to the fire, giving them all warning glares when they began licking their lips and eying the fish roasting in front of them. "You can wait until it's done." I reminded them before turning back to Thorunn to continue preparing the fish.

Before long the fish was done and we were sitting back by the fire eating in silence, the dragons still having their own conversation though as they ate.

"Cant help but wonder how dragons are so open to talking with one another, but then we're just sitting here in silence." I mused as I turned my gaze from the dragons to Thorunn who was wrapped by one of Zu's wings.

"I've never been very talkative with humans, sorry." Thorunn muttered as she kept her gaze on the fire in front of us. I glanced back at Toothless, to see he had a neutral expression over her words, before glancing outside to see it was much later than we thought.

"Well, it's getting pretty late so I think we'll let you get some rest. Come on, Toothless." I said as I stood up, motioning to Toothless to follow me.

I watched as he glanced between the other two dragons, grumbling something to them before standing up to follow me.

I had just gotten to the door when I heard Thorunn mutter something. "You say something?" I asked as I glanced back at her to see her still wrapped in Zu's bony wing.

"I...thank you. For helping with the fish...and you know this house." Thorunn said as she kept her gaze on the ground. I smiled slightly, shrugging at the gestures before remembering she couldn't see me while looking at the floor.

"It's nothing, really. Anything to make sure you three are comfortable here." I assured before Toothless nudged me, obviously wanting to go home now. "Well, goodnight Thorunn." I said before Toothless and I left to start our walk home.

**Third Person POV**

The sun rose slowly, casting it's golden glow over chilly Berk to try to wake the inhabitants. It was a few minutes after it rose that a figure darted through the skies, already wide awake, ready for the day as always.

Diving away from the rays of the sun, the dragon flew close enough to the water for it's companion to reach down and drag her fingers through the water before spiraling back up into the sky, narrowly missing a fishing boat's mast with the upward movement.

"Careful, Pythius, we don't want to disrupt the inhabitants." Thorunn reminded the adolescent dragon as they leveled out a bit more. All she got in return was a grunt for talking to the Boneknapper like it was a hatchling again. "Alright, now let's try a dive bomb." Thorunn offered, earning a gleeful roar from Pythius before he immediately stopped flapping, tucking his wings against his body.

For the vikings on shore, the sight could have looked as though they were injured, but in truth it was an everyday training exercise that Thorunn performed with the dragons.

Pythius fell fast, Thorunn holding tight to his horns as the water below approached faster and faster. "Alright...now!" Thorunn yelled, and on cue Pythius spread his wings, catching a slight updraft before evening out and speeding over the water fast enough to kick up some of the water.

"Good job, you didn't touch the water this time." Thorunn praised as she released her tight grip on the dragon's horns, sitting back a bit more as Pythius swirled up to return to the always waiting Zu up on shore. "Don't want to make him jealous, do we?" Thorunn asked the younger Dragon jokingly before he shot above Zu, letting out a triumphant roar before the trainer dropped from his back, Zu darting to catch her.

What could have looked like an accidental fall to some of their watching vikings in fact was intended though, because next thing Thorunn landed on her spiky companion's head, looking like she had not a worry in the world. "Always my savior, Zu." Thorunn mused as he swung down to land on the ground, grumbling and roaring out like he wasn't amused by the stunt.

"That was so cool!"

"I wanna try!"

"Can she do that again?"

Thorunn looked up as a herd of children charged towards them, surprising not only the trainer but the dragons as well since normally children feared dragons, not gasp and aww at them.

"Lady, lady can you do that again?" Thorunn looked down at a little tyke wearing a small helmet that held in his eyes a look of wonder and excitement at their morning routine.

"Me? Are you sure that you don't want one of the other boys or girls around here to show you some tricks?" Thorunn asked as she knelt down to speak to the child directly, her own dragons now being swarmed by the other children.

"Their dragons don't look as cool, or let them drop from way above like that. We wanna go for rides, or watch you do that again." The little boy said, his voice even full of wonder at the actions that she had gotten so used to by now that she didn't even think them amazing.

It's going to take some getting used to being here on Berk, obviously.

Hiccup stretched his arms with a groan as he walked out of his house, Toothless behind him and letting out a tired yawn of his own. "Alright, bud, wanna go for a walk with me?" Hiccup asked as he scratched at his stubbly chin tiredly, deciding that maybe a walk will wake them up more since soon they had to be at the Academy to give a lecture to the children of the village on how Dragons were good, not bad.

Toothless shrugged, but none the less followed his friend when he began walking, pricking his ears up each time Hiccup took a step with his prosthetic since it gave a squeak.

"Yeah, I know, I gotta fix it." Hiccup said as they walked, looking around a bit surprised since normally all the little kids would be clamoring to climb on Toothless's back by now, but shockingly there were none to be seen.

Their walk continued for a little while longer before they decided to head to the academy, since none of the children were to be seen they must be waiting for them there, right? Hiccup walked into the academy, but all he saw were the normal dragons that stayed there and Astrid, since she was helping him with the lecture. "Where is everyone?" Hiccup asked as he walked up to Astrid, who was busy feeding Stormfly.

"I thought they were all with you two again. Haven't seen one rug rat all day." Astrid said as she threw another piece of chicken to Stormfly.

"I was expecting them all to follow me too, but Toothless and I were alone for our walk this morning." Hiccup said before he heard a Boneknapper's roar once more, surprised at first since he didn't think Thorunn would be up this early.

It was about then that the two Boneknapper's appeared, swirling around the arena gracefully as Hiccup realized they weren't alone, paling in fear when he realized that they held most of the children that were supposed to be in the academy for the lecture today.

"Alright, looks like we're here." Thorunn announced to the children, trying not to laugh as they all booed and awwed, obviously having enjoyed their ride on a real Boneknapper. "Zu, take us down please." Thorunn said before the dragon swooped down, Pythius following close behind as they flew in through the open gates of the arena, landing with a roar before Thorunn leaped from Zu's head to start dismounting the children.

"I hope you all enjoyed your flight today, and let's keep in mind, don't try to ride a dragon unless..." Thorunn trailed off, waiting for the children to finish her sentence for her and smiling when they shouted out it's tamed for her.

Hiccup was in shock. He'd never let any of the children ride any of the dragons before, heck he was pretty sure that if he did he'd be getting attacked by their parents instead of the dragons, but somehow Thorunn, a stranger to their island, had gotten away with taking them for a fly on her Boneknappers.

Hiccup started to walk up to the dragons to help the children down when he realized that they had ropes and clasps tied tight on some of their bones, just then realizing what Thorunn had done.

She had managed to create makeshift saddles for the children to ensure that they were one hundred percent safe.

"Thank you, for riding Boneknapper." Thorunn mused as she helped the last child off of Zu's back before moving on to Pythius, who did not look amused in the slightest over playing transport for a bunch of hatchlings. "Oh stop your complaining, you'll get extra cod tonight remember." Thorunn reminded the adolescent before realizing that someone was already dismounting the children for her.

Astrid got the last kid down before turning away from Thorunn, obviously not too happy about the little stunt that she had pulled with the children. I mean, the nerve of her! She's new in their village, and she just takes the children for a ride on her dragons without even asking if it was okay?!

"Thorunn, you took the kids for a ride on your dragons?" Thorunn looked behind her, not having heard Hiccup come up behind her since she was trying to take the restraints off of her dragons.

"They found us after our morning training and kept begging. I figured it was okay, so long as they were strapped in and we didn't do many stunts." Thorunn answered truthfully as she got the last restraint off of Pythius, who then proceeded to shake her off since the blasted things felt horrible on his bones. "Pythius!" Thorunn chastised, only to earn an innocent bat of her dragons eyes before he ran off and over to Toothless who was conversing with Zu at the moment.

Thorunn turned her attention back to Hiccup to see he was looking over the makeshift restraints she had used for the children. "Did you come up with these on your own?" Hiccup asked as he looked up at her, watching as she gave him a shrug in response.

"Worked with what was nearby, figured it was safer than letting them ride bareback like I do." Thorunn said as Hiccup looked between her and the contraption he held in his hands, at a loss for words now since no one else besides him had ever tried to make safety gear for the dragons.

"Hiccup, we have to start the lesson." Hiccup was brought out of his thoughts by Astrid calling to him from the bleachers, where she had the children all waiting for the lecture to begin.

"I'm sorry, I've got to go give a lecture on Dragons being Good, but maybe we could talk later." Hiccup said before Astrid yelled his name once more, rushing over to begin the lesson as Thorunn looked to her own dragons that were waiting nearby for her.

"Come on you two, let's go explore the village." Thorunn offered before running off, leaving the two to run after her.

A while later after the lesson was over and the children sent home Hiccup found himself examining the restraints Thorunn left at the academy, amazed that he wasn't the only one who knew how to improve dragon safety and that she did it so fast.

Hiccup gave a glance towards Toothless, who was laying in the center of the arena sunbathing, before giving a whistle for him. "Come on Toothless, let's go see Gobber." Hiccup called as he picked up the contraption and set off to go see if he could possibly improve upon her idea of child safety restraints for the dragons.

"Ah, so ya took da we rug rats for a fly, did ya? Bet ya didn't expec' tha' when ya came here." Gobber said to the girl who he hadn't seen since she was an infant, surprised she grew up to be like this.

I mean her name did end with Skull Splitter, you'd expect someone like that to be out fighting in wars, not training dragons.

"No, I didn't. I dropped them off at the academy and Hiccup and his friend seemed horrified that I did it though." Thorunn said with a shrug as she glanced at her dragons who were outside eating from barrels full of fish.

"Ay, can't blame 'em. Ne'er tried ta take da weesnappers out be'for ya came, after all." Gobber said before looking down at what Thorunn was busy sewing. "What ya makin'?" Gobber asked as Thorunn glanced back at the man, surprised by how invasive he was.

"It's nothing, just an improvement on my armor." Thorunn assured as the old blacksmith ticked his tongue at the idea, more for the idea of sharpening weapons or creating new ones.

"Should be makin' a weapon. More useful, armor just holds ya back, little missy." Gobber said as Thorunn tried to ignore the criticizing, since this was something she had been working on for a long time now.

"Gobber, I've got something I wanna..." Hiccup's words died off as he realized that his friend wasn't alone in his shop, eyes landing on the still somewhat new lass sitting across from Gobber sewing a needle through the leather Gobber had provided her.

"What's that ya got?" Gobber asked as he nodded towards the ropes and metal clasps that Hiccup held in his hands.

Thorunn glanced up to see Hiccup had her makeshift safety restraints for the children, putting down the needle she had in her hands as she rose. "That would be my way of making safety gear for the kids on a few seconds notice, Gobber." Thorunn advised as she walked up to Hiccup to retrieve the contraption.

"Now that's a good idea. Why didn' ya come up wit' that Hiccup?" Gobber asked, a teasing tone to his voice as he looked over at the teen in question who just rolled his eyes at the old blacksmith.

Hiccup turned his attention back to Thorunn as she dropped the ropes and clasps on one of Gobber's workbenches, moving back to her previous work then since the second's notice device didn't seem to interest her. "I think it's a really good idea. It could help us with teaching the kids about other kinds of dragons even if we...maybe improve on it so it doesn't attach directly to the dragons." Hiccup said as he walked over to his workbench, pushing some things aside to start sketching a design.

He looked up when he heard a soft snort come from the other girl, seeing her eyes still on her own work but obviously amused by the notion. "That will be a hard feat to accomplish, what with my Boneknapper's having bones stick up everywhere, it was easier for them. But a smaller, more sleek dragon, you're going to need a lot more equipment for a dragon like that." Thorunn advised as she kept her eyes on the needle in her fingers, unaware of Hiccup's gaze on her.

Gobber blinked, looking between the two wee teens in his workshop and how both were so intent on their own contraptions. He knew Hiccup, he knew the boy could become obsessed over improving upon the image of Dragons. But this new girl, well he had a feeling this would take some getting used to, on both of their parts.

Normally, the women kept out of his workshop. Only him and Hiccup. But now they had an extra, and from the way Gobber kept catching Hiccup glance in her direction, he had a feeling the younger Viking was feeling just as amazed as he.

Or maybe it was that boy's almost constant curiosity again.

Ah well, can't hurt to find out, can it?

"So Hiccup, why not ask the youn' lass to help ya wit' your idea there?" Gobber spoke up, breaking the silence that had fallen over the room to try to help the boy he'd known since he was born out a bit.

"Huh?" Hiccup looked up, obviously having been in his own thoughts as he was working on the sketch for the new safety gear.

Gobber rolled his eyes at the boy before standing up, walking up behind him and laying a hand on the teen's shoulders. "Why not ask the lass to help, ya dolt. Stop daydreaming about Astrid for once." Gobber teased, smiling innocently when a red coloring came to taint the teens pale freckled cheeks.

From the giggling he heard from the other side of the room, he had a feeling that Thorunn found it just as amusing as himself though.

"Gobber, I was not..." Gobber cut the poor lad short by giving him a push towards Thorunn, snatching up the parchment and taking it over to Thorunn himself.

"Here ya are, lass. Ya made the thin', only fair ya get ta help." Gobber said with a smile at the young trainer as she put down her needle and took the parchment to examine herself.

As Thorunn was looking at the sketch Hiccup had managed to draw before being shoved over there, the other two men turned to each other, Gobber looking as relaxed as always while Hiccup looked not so much, beginning to mouth some things to the older man as the older stout man clasped his hands behind his back, a smile on his face as he began whistling a tune, unaffected by the teen's attitude with him for his actions. "Gobber." Hiccup finally hissed, covering his mouth a second later when he realized he actually spoke that part.

Thorunn glanced up at the two, giving a confused glance at the teen viking. She rolled her eyes though instead before returning her gaze to the parchment in her fingers. "Well, I think from this you've got the basic idea down." Thorunn advised, unaware that the two men had gone back to their one-sided silent debate.

Hiccup froze, having been ready to drag his master out of the workshop until he heard Thorunn's voice pipe in about his design. Turning his green eyes to her, he was surprised to see her now drawing something on the paper.

"But...this might help a bit more." Thorunn advised before handing the parchment back to Hiccup, glancing out the window at her two dragons who were once again talking with Toothless before returning to sewing the thread through the leather on her workbench.

Hiccup's eyes went from Thorunn to the parchment she passed back to him before he finally looked down at what she had drawn on his work, eyes widening when he realized just what she had drawn on the paper. "Of course! That'll work a million times better!" Hiccup chirped before rushing over to his workbench, leaving Gobber confused and Thorunn still focused on her own work.

Gobber hobbled up behind Hiccup to see just what Thorunn had offered, curiosity getting his own interests now as he looked down at the paper to see the basic saddle that Hiccup had drawn now had someone's new restraint straps set to go up and over the rider's shoulders, watching as Hiccup then proceeded to draw straps down that went around the rider's waist as well.

"Well now, you two just click like a puzzle now, don't ya?" Gobber spoke up, jarring both from their work with his loud tone before letting out a loud laugh at the flustered look Hiccup gained from his words. Thorunn though looked indifferent as always about his words.

The work continued on for a little while longer before Thorunn slipped away as the men were bickering, taking Zu by the horns as she walked outside. "Let's go for a night fly, buddy." Thorunn offered as she gave a glance at the now setting sun, wanting to spend some time with her long time companion anyways.

"Ah, where'd the lass go?" Gobber spoke up in the middle of Hiccup chastising him for trying to interfere with his work, neither of them having noticed her slip out.

"Wow, she's sneaky." Hiccup said at the news before he heard what sounded like a dragon taking off outside, guessing that it must be Thorunn taking off with Zu.

"Ay, looks like she's gon' for a fly lad." Gobber said as he looked out the window to see one Boneknapper flying away, but the other still sitting nearby conversing with the Night Fury.

Crisp dusk air wafted it's way into her lungs, a welcoming feel as Thorunn relaxed more into her companion, even releasing her grip from his horns as they flew through the last rays of daytime at a leisurely pace. "Bet you missed this, Zu. Just the two of us." Thorunn mused as she reached down, scratching her friend under the chin as he grumbled then purred his response to her statement.

On a nearby cliff sat a Deadly Nadder, it's own rider watching the Boneknapper swoop through the sky with it's trainer. The Deadly Nadder chirped and chittered something out as it looked down at it's own rider. "Yeah girl, I know they seem to innocent. I just...I don't think so. Especially not after this morning." Astrid grumbled before blowing a stray strand of her out of her eyes.

Stormfly rolled her eyes before nudging her rider, chirping something in response to her words even though the human more than likely still would not understand.

"If you're trying to tell me I'm jealous like Fishlegs did, I'm just going to remind you that I'm the one who gives you food every day." Astrid muttered before sitting down on the ground, Stormfly following suit to wrap her much larger body around the human to try to keep her comfortable.

Stormfly chittered out something again as Astrid watched the Boneknapper soar over the forest in front of them, causing her rider to look back at her again.

"I'm not spying, just...observing for the greater good of the tribe." Astrid countered, since the look in Stormfly's eyes seemed to convey just what she was trying to say to the human.

Stormfly rolled her eyes at the human once more before standing up, shaking her wings to boost some blood to them before nudging her rider, wanting to go back so she could get some food. The sun had already set, so it was time for dinner finally.

"Alright, alright, alright, I know you want to go get dinner." Astrid said as she stood up, stretching before climbing up onto the Deadly Nadder's back so they could take off and go home for dinner.

Zu flew a little higher as his rider stood up, one hand holding onto his horn for balance while she stood on his head. The large Boneknapper grumbled, obviously not very happy about the position, but calmed a bit when Thorunn patted him on the head to assure him she was fine.

Their flight continued for a little while longer before Zu turned to start the return to their home in the viking village. "Can't quiet get used to living in a house, can you Zu?" Thorunn asked as she laid on his back, staring up at all the stars in the sky as he flew her home.

Zu gave a grumbling roar in response, earning a laugh from the rider since she took that as meaning he still wanted to camp out and spend their nights around a meager camp fire where all they had was each other.

"Come on bud, it's not like we'll be here for long." Thorunn reminded the protective male as he landed in front of the house, both noticing how Pythius had left the front door open. "That dragon, never listens to a word we say." Thorunn muttered before rolling off of Zu's back, landing on her feet as Zu stomped into the house, letting her follow behind him before Thorunn realized that they weren't alone.

"Toothless? You should be with your master." Thorunn muttered as she noticed Toothless sitting beside the campfire with Pythius. The girl backtracked, expecting to see his rider outside looking for him, but surprisingly he was nowhere to be seen. With a glance back at the dragons they just continued on with their own conversation as she rolled her eyes at them.

"Alright, you can stay the night I guess, but if your trainer gets mad, it's all on you." Thorunn reminded as she walked up to the Night Fury and scratched him under the chin, smiling at the way he started purring at her actions before turning away to start making dinner.

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**Well now, it wouldn't be any fun if Astrid wasn't suspicious of every newcomer to the island, now would it? I hope you all enjoyed this chapter, think I'm finally starting to get back into the swing of things after my two year absence, so I can definitely promise things will get much better.**

**Once again, thank you all for reading, and I hope to see your reviews soon.**


	4. Escape To The Cove

**Greetings once again readers! I'd like to start by again thanking those of you who have been reading up until now. Don't have much to say this time though, so I'm letting you get right to the chapter.**

**Enjoy!**

* * *

"No, I called dibs."

"But you've got a butt for a face."

"I think both of you just need to shut up."

"Guys, neither of you should be doing this."

Hiccup tried to drown out the bickering between his friends, since Snotlout and Tuffnut were trying to say who would get first crack at impressing the one dragon trainer not there at the moment.

"Alright, just shut up already!" Astrid burst after listening to the boys bickering continue, knocking both of their heads together before walking over to Hiccup and taking a seat next to him, looking down at the parchment he was drawing on.

Hiccup didn't even acknowledge her as he continued updating the design he had on the paper, having been working on the idea for nearly two weeks now he wasn't going to give up until it was done.

He had actually made some of the designs, but they either didn't fit right, broke too easily, or the dragons just flat out hated them. It was a lot harder than he thought to make safety restraints for the beasts.

"If you guys keep bickering like this, I'm gonna feed you to Stormfly." Hiccup looked up finally upon realizing that someone was sitting next to him, not having seen her sit or even been listening to what was being discussed.

"What's going on?" Hiccup asked as he folded up his design to tuck into his vest, glancing over at his cousin and Tuffnut who were chest to chest with competitive looks on both their faces.

"They're being idiots again, that's what." Astrid growled before watching as Hiccup stood up to go try to keep the peace like he always did with their group. Guess it was good he did now, since one day he'll be chief and have to keep the peace among the whole tribe too.

"Oh baby, no need to be jealous, there's plenty of Snotlout to go around." Snotlout said in response to Astrid's annoyance with their actions, yelping when she threw a knife at him that happened to be laying on the table in front of her.

"Alright, you guys, enough." Hiccup intervened as he pushed both the boys apart from each other, a hand on both of their chests before they immediately turned their backs to him, crossing their arms over their chests like stubborn children.

"Fine, I'll just go prove that I'll win either way." Snotlout said with a huff as he kept his gaze on the door to the great hall, wondering where the girl in question was that he was destined to woo and make his own.

"Alright, what are you two fighting over this time?" Hiccup asked as he pinched the bridge of his nose, used to the two boys fighting over many things in the years he's known them.

"They're fighting over who can have Thorunn." Fishlegs advised before stepping back when the two vikings in question glared angrily at him for letting Hiccup know what they were up to.

"Wha...guys! You can't fight over having her!" Hiccup chastised the boys as they both turned back to face him, annoyance written plainly on their faces.

"Well, you can't have her either!" Snotlout snapped angrily, actually earning a grunt of agreement from Tuffnut over the statement as Hiccup looked at his cousin like he was insane.

"Snotlout, she's a person. She's not someone you can just claim, you have to..." Hiccup trailed off, unsure what else to say at that point since he, by sheer luck he figured, had Astrid for himself because of the Dragons.

"He doesn't even know how to woo a girl, just ignore him." Tuffnut grumbled before pushing Hiccup aside like he was nothing to them.

Hiccup glared at the blonde viking before butting right back in between them. "She get's to choose who she wants, but I doubt that she'd want either of you." Hiccup advised, surprised with his snide comment at the end since he only meant to say how she was her own person who got to decide for herself.

"Oh? And why is that? You can't have two woman, Hiccup. This isn't like when you tried to be with both Astrid and Heather. You already have Astrid, so Thorunn's open game for the rest of us. Bow out now, pipsqueak." Snotlout said with a smirk at his triumph before shoving Hiccup aside, getting right back up in Tuffnut's face as their quarrel continued.

Hiccup looked between the two vikings, part of him wanting to settle their dispute for them while another part of him wanted to punch Snotlout in his big fat nose for what he said. He didn't even have Astrid anymore, so to speak.

The tough blonde viking barely gave a glance in his direction really unless she wanted something or they were doing dragon training, it had been like that for about a year now and though he hated it, part of him just didn't care anymore.

But more so he just wanted to punch Snotlout in the nose right now for insinuating that he liked to be with multiple woman at once, because truth be told he only ever wanted one woman and he was pretty sure that woman hated him by this point.

Without another word at the bickering teens in front of him, Hiccup turned on his prosthetic and stormed out of the Great Hall, slamming the door shut behind him as he went.

He didn't even get to see the way Astrid bashed Snotlout over the head with a metal plate for what the moronic teen had said.

Toothless had been sitting comfortably out in the grass when he heard the sound of stomping feet and the occasional squeak of a prosthetic, looking up as his friend whirled around the corner and headed straight for him. "Come on Toothless, let's go for a quick flight." Hiccup grumbled as he walked up to the Night Fury.

Perking his ears up in curiosity as to what happened, Toothless really didn't get much of a chance to protest as Hiccup began setting up his harness and before he knew it they were off and running for a head start into the night sky.

The flight was silent for the first few minutes, the only sound that which came from below them or Hiccup's jagged breathing from his anger over his cousins words about him, still wanting to just go back and punch the idiotic oaf in the nose.

They flew for a few more minutes before landing in the cove, Hiccup jumping off his buddies back and storming ahead of them a few feet, body tense as he held his arms at his side.

Toothless watched for a few seconds, ears pulled back in worry for his long time companion before taking a few steps up to stand beside him, propping himself up on his hind legs as he looked down at the little human who looked ready to blow at any second.

As if that were his cue, Hiccup began kicking at whatever was on the ground in front of him, a branch snapping under his prosthetic and a rock going flying into the side of the cove as he threw his little temper tantrum.

Toothless just sat there and watched, knowing by now that this was the human's way of relieving anger over things at times. He really didn't understand human's that well though. If he were so angry, why not just go battle the lunk head that caused this? That's what a dragon would do. Fight until the strongest one was left standing triumphant over the other.

The tantrum continued for a little while longer before Toothless watched the teen loose his balance and fall back to the ground with a thud, unable to hold back the laugh that burst from his maw at the sight of his trainer sprawled on the ground but still steaming with anger.

"Oh yeah, just laugh it up Toothless." Hiccup growled from where he laid on the ground, feeling his temper spark a little more when Toothless fell back onto his own back in a fit of laughter. "Oh you useless oaf!" Hiccup snapped before jumping back up, storming away from his dragon who was still sprawled on his wings in laughter.

Hiccup stood with his arms crossed over his chest in anger on the other side of the cove, wanting to kick and punch anything nearby again, before he heard a snap nearby, eyes shooting towards the direction as his own dragon's ears perked up as well at the noise.

"Who's there?" Hiccup called out after a brief silence before reaching down to grab the dagger he kept hidden in his boot, turning to Toothless to see the dragon was just sitting their with his head tilted to the side and ears perked up.

Hiccup began to walk slowly towards the tree where he heard the snap come from, wincing when his prosthetic continued to squeak every few steps since it meant he had no real stealth to see who was watching them before he approached the tree, looking around the trunk and expecting to see a spying dragon or one of his friends, but he was completely alone.

Hiccup scratched the stubble on his chin, wondering if it was just the tree shifting before turning to go back to his dragon, only to be met with piercing green eyes when he turned around, yelling out as he fell back against the tree from the sneaky fiend who had somehow gotten behind him.

**Hiccup POV**

I hit the trunk of the tree before yelling out Toothless's name to come help me, eyes shut as I waited for him to attack, but all I heard in response was him grumbling something instead, opening my eyes to see that I was alone again and Toothless still sitting on the other side of the Cove, head tilted to the side in confusion. "Wha..." I trailed off, beyond confused as I looked around, expecting to see whatever that was retreating.

I was about to stand up when I felt something come between my back and the bark, stumbling forward quickly before whirling around, glad my dagger was still in my hands as I prepared to swing, before freezing when I saw just what the green eyes belonged to.

"Didn't mean to scare ya, Dragon Trainer." I let out a sigh of relief when I realized that it was just Thorunn. "Was going to help you up, didn't realize I scared you that bad." Thorunn said as she stood up from the kneeling position she had been in, staying by the tree as I realized I still had my dagger pointed at her, quickly shoving it back into my boot since I obviously didn't need it.

"Wha...what are you doing out here this late?" I asked as Toothless came over to sit between us, propping himself up on his hind legs again as Thorunn reached up and scratched under his chin for him.

"I could be asking you the same, since normally all of Berk is inside by now from what I've seen." Thorunn said with a shrug before turning to face me, giving me a chance to see the way her emerald eyes seemed to glow in the moonlight before she turned back to Toothless.

"Well...why were you spying on me?" I asked in response, hoping that one would give me a better answer than the last question.

"I wouldn't call it spying, I would call it...watching someone throw a tantrum in the middle of the woods." Thorunn said in response as I felt my face flush at how she had seen that, but now I couldn't help wondering how long she had actually been watching me.

"Still the point is why're you out here this late?" I asked, taking a few steps towards her to try to emphasize that I wanted a better answer than just a witty comeback.

Thorunn's eyes went from Toothless to me now as I saw a small smile form on her lips. "I was out for a walk, didn't think I'd come across you out here, Dragon Trainer." Thorunn replied before I watched her run towards the tree behind her, leaping against the trunk before grabbing onto a branch and pulling herself up, just then realizing what she had been doing when she first showed herself to me.

"You were hanging upside down when you scared me, weren't you?" I asked as I looked up at the way she was just looking out over the cove.

"Living with dragons since you were nine causes you to take on some of their behaviors at times." Thorunn said as I watched her gaze flicker from the cove to Toothless as he climbed up beside her and dropped down to swing upside down from the tree.

"You've been with dragons for that long?" I asked quietly, shocked since I've only been with Toothless since I was fourteen, and now I'm seventeen.

Thorunn let out a small chuckle as I looked up at her, surprised when I saw a sad expression cross her face before vanishing just as quick as she saw me watching her. "I met Zu when I was nine, yes. Been with him ever since. It's been...a very eventful eight years to say the least." Thorunn said with a shrug before looking down at Toothless as he mumbled something in response to her talking.

I jumped backwards when Thorunn swung down to hang with Toothless, a bit shocked at the sight since while I've seen my fair share of odd behaviors, I'd never seen someone intentionally mimic a dragon's own behavior before.

"I would ask you if you'd like to try, but with a look at your leg I don't think that would exactly work out very well." Thorunn said as she nodded towards my prosthetic, and all I did was roll my eyes at her assumption.

"What? I...I can do it. Just...give me a second." I said before walking over to the tree to try climbing up to their level.

I glanced at the two hanging from the branch to see them exchanging worried looks before I began climbing, slipping a few times before finally reaching the branch they were hanging from.

Toothless began his grumbling laughter once I climbed out onto the branch, and I swatted his back leg that I could reach, sticking my tongue out at him when he did the same to me before watching him turn his full attention to Thorunn.

"Well, if you're so sure you can do it, give it a try, Dragon Trainer." Thorunn said with a glance in my direction as I rolled my eyes at her necessity to refer to me as the Dragon Trainer.

"It's Hiccup." I reminded before hooking my good leg onto the branch, glancing at my prosthetic for a second as I wondered if it would even hold up my weight on the branch. It was about then that Toothless and Thorunn began giggling to themselves though, so I hooked my other leg onto the branch before letting go, accidentally letting out a yelp as I swung down but glad when my legs kept me from falling completely.

"Well, we were wondering if you'd join us." Thorunn said from the other side of Toothless as I rolled my eyes at this girl once more.

"I told you I could do it." I reminded before Toothless dropped down from the branch, causing it to shake when his weight was lifted from it. My hands shot up to hold onto the branch, but when I glanced in Thorunn's direction she was completely calm, though then again she's done this before so I shouldn't be surprised.

"Well, hope you know how to get down then without falling on your head, Hiccup." Thorunn said and at that I blanked, not having even thought of that before climbing up here. I watched as Thorunn released her legs from the branch, flipping in the air before landing on all fours on the ground. "To help the dragons, you must be one with the dragons." Thorunn said with a smirk up at me before walking over to Toothless, still holding her smile over my current predicament up here.

Shutting my eyes tight, I began to release my legs from the branch slowly.

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**Cliffhanger, sorry couldn't be helped with that one. An idea popped in my mind so I split the chapter that I was originally going to write to try to add a bit more excitement to it. Don't worry though, I do make daily updates after all.**

**Thank you once again for reading, I love writing and posting on here for everyone else to read it. Next chapter will be up tomorrow, unless yall don't wanna wait then voice your opinion and I just might post sooner.**

**I do have two chapters written after this already anyways.**

**Anyways, thanks again!**


	5. Bonding

**Greetings once again! Just have to say this real quick, I don't think I've typed this fast in a long time. I'm already chapters ahead of this, but that doesn't mean I don't take ideas from you guys. Just give a review with some ideas if you want, and I can see what I can do.**

**Oh also, today I'm coming to you from a special place! I'm flying! Unfortunately though, not on a dragon. Tis a shame.**

**But anyways, back to the story! Thank you to the one person that's reviewed so far, and I hope to see many more reviews soon! Enjoy!**

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Pain, gods it hurts. What happened? I let out a little groan, wondering if it would be a smart or stupid idea to open my eyes. "Alright, he's starting to come to Toothless." At the voice, I slowly opened my eyes, surprised when I was met with the glowing green eyes again.

Toothless's grumbling dragon talk reached my ears first as I found myself stuck in the glowing green eyes in front of me, that is until the owner let out a little laugh that sounded far to cute to be my dragon's laugh, and with a glance down I saw the small smile played on her lips.

"Well, we were wondering if you were going to wake up." I blinked my eyes for a few seconds to try to regain myself, but all that did was make my head hurt more.

"What...happened?" I asked as I moved to sit up, but was met with a hard object in front of me, finally breaking my gaze from the green eyes to look over and see Toothless laying his head over my body. It was about then that my nose was met with a horrible smell and I couldn't help the gag that rose up at it.

"Well, obviously your idea worked better Toothless. But...maybe lay off the smelly fish a bit." Thorunn's voice hit my ears next as I looked back to see that it was her who's eyes I had become enchanted by upon my awakening. "He wanted to burp in your face a few times to see if it would wake you, it worked obviously." Thorunn said with a shrug before I felt her arm work it's way under my torso, helping me sit up as I lifted my head off of the soft object it had been nestled against.

I looked down to see a vest bundled up, looking over at Thorunn again to see she had made a makeshift pillow for me. "What happened?" I asked again as I put a hand to the back of my head, wincing when it met with a lump as Thorunn helped me sit up.

"You fell and hit the back of your head against the ground pretty hard. You've been out for about...twenty minutes now. We were about ready to take you back to your Dad when Toothless decided to start burping in your face in hope that you'd wake up." Thorunn explained as I glared at Toothless for the wake up call, but all he did was whimper and I couldn't stay mad at him for trying to help me that way.

"Agh, god my head hurts. I'm leaving the hanging with dragons to you, never again." I muttered as I stood up slowly, Toothless catching me when I began to wobble a little.

"Do you need my help getting home? It's the least I can do after the whole incident." Thorunn said as she stood up as well, grabbing her vest and tossing it over her shoulder as she watched me.

I glanced at Toothless, and he nudged me towards Thorunn, a look in his eyes that I'd never seen before as he did so. "Sure...I guess. Doesn't look like Toothless wants to fly home anyways." I said before Thorunn offered her arm to me, obviously thinking I needed help walking. "I'm fine, I can walk, just probably will need help if I fall again." I assured before Thorunn nodded at the statement before letting me take the lead back to the village.

We were silent for a while as we walked, the only noise coming from my leg squeaking every few steps and Toothless swishing his tail across the ground behind him as we walked. "How's your head?" Thorunn's voice drew me out of my thoughts as I looked over towards her to see she held a somewhat worried look for my well being.

"Ah, it's fine. Just gonna have to put some ice on it probably." I said as I gingerly put a hand on the bump on the back of my head, trying not to cringe at the pain it caused just from touching it.

"Sorry, again." Thorunn muttered as I looked at her again, surprised by what I saw. The previously confident, easy going trainer that I'd been talking with earlier now looked nervous, more closed up like some scared little hatchling.

The sight pulled on my heart just like it always does when I see someone in this state.

"Hey, it wasn't your fault. I did it to myself, remember." I reminded as I laid a hand on her shoulder, and just like the last time I touched her she shrugged out of my touch, darting ahead a bit like my touch burned almost.

"Well, I gave you the idea, so if there's anything you need anytime soon just ask." Thorunn said as our eyes locked again, her eyes seeming to glow once more in the moonlight as I found myself ensnared in that gaze once more. But it was about then that a roar cut through the silence of night, Thorunn whipping around at the sound.

"Wow, wonder who's dragon that was. Normally they're all asleep by now." I mused as the village finally came into view.

"That would be my protective Zu. I've got to go before he comes looking for me." Thorunn said, giving one more glance at me before she took off running through the trees towards her house, not even giving me a chance to say goodnight.

I sighed as I ran my finger tips over the welt on my head before continuing on home.

**Third Person POV**

Asleep, at last. Green eyes shifting from the injured teen laying across the room to the open window, Toothless quickly proceeded to sneak out of the window, listening once he was out to make sure that his companion didn't wake up. When certain he quickly jumped from the roof, running through the village before sliding to a halt at the one closest to the forest, sitting down and watching the house patiently.

Moments later the door opened and out crept the adolescent Boneknapper that he had been waiting for, flashing a toothless grin at the dragon once their gazes met before he jumped up, dashing around one another excitedly.

Their master's had known that they would converse and lounge around with one another during the day, but during the night, that was a completely different game.

Actually, the thing that still amazed him was how the Boneknapper's trainer still referred to it as a boy.

Toothless smiled at his friend once more before he was off and running into the forest, knowing that they couldn't play out here in the village. The human's don't appreciate them playing at night here.

A race ensured as they ran through the trees, growling and grumbling happily as they ran for the other side of the island, a roar piercing the silence of night as they realized their other friends would soon be with them.

Yes, Toothless loved these nights. He loved that he met Pythius more though, because it was thanks to Pythius and her travels of the world that he was able to meet more friends.

Toothless jumped over Pythius' back, tongue lolling out of his mouth happily as he continued to bound and chitter happily over getting to play with his friends without being interrupted by the humans.

He did love Hiccup. He was his best friend and he helped him and saved him. But a dragon needs other dragons sometimes, and right now was one of those times.

The two dragons jumped over the last bush finally, both letting out roars of excitement when they realized that their friends were already waiting for them.

If any of the vikings on the island had actually been awake at that ungodly hour, they would probably be sending out a search party with how much roaring and noise the happy dragons were making in their playtime away from the humans.

It was a few hours later when Toothless led the way back to the village for Pythius, both happy and ready for bed at last as they trotted out of the trees into the village.

Toothless was about to go back to his home and curl up for a good night's sleep when he felt a tug on his tail, looking back in surprise when he saw Pythius give him a playful look before she darted forward, nuzzling her face underneath the smaller Night Fury's chin as she wrapped her wing around him.

Toothless swayed his tail a little at the affectionate gesture, pressing back down onto her own bony head before Pythius leaned up and pressed her forehead to his own, both letting out happy chitters as they finally parted.

Pythius trotted back over to her house, stopping once she was a few feet away before looking back at Toothless, a happy look in her eyes before she went back into the house, leaving the equally happy Night Fury to return to his own home.

Toothless crawled up to the open window slowly, ears focused to make sure that Hiccup or his father didn't wake up as he reached the window, looking down at the sleeping form of his companion as he heard him speak. "Mmm...Astrid..." Toothless rolled his eyes at the sleeping teen as he carefully stepped over his body to return to his own bed.

Curling up quickly in his bed, Toothless cast one last glance at his sleeping friend across the room as he heard a different name leave the teen's mouth now, letting out a little laugh at how human's could be in their sleep.

One thing Toothless knew though, he was definitely glad that he was a dragon. Yes, life as a dragon was by far must easier, and much more fun especially on nights like this were he gets to go play with his friends for a few hours.

Ignoring his friend's sleep talk, Toothless laid his head down and prepared to follow the teen's example and get a good night sleep.

"Dude, Hiccup, what happened to you?" Hiccup tried to ignore his cousin as he held the ice he had tighter to the welt on his head. "You look like someone bashed you on the head with a rock. Was it Astrid? Please tell me it was Astrid." Hiccup shoved Snotlout away from him as he got up into his face, wanting to be left alone so he could ice the welt on his head.

"I think he tried to...ya know...and she said no then wham, bumpy head." Tuffnut said as Hiccup stood up from the bleachers, deciding that if someone wanted the children to be taught today, it could be one of them instead of him.

"I'm going somewhere quiet while I try to ice this." Hiccup said even though he knew the two teens were too busy trying to figure out if Astrid was the one who injured him.

**Thorunn POV**

Zu landed swiftly in front of our house, grumbling once I got off of his back and walking away from me. "Oh stop complaining, big baby." I called after him as I wondered if Pythius was awake yet, since surprisingly he didn't get up this morning when I tried to wake him for our morning training, but then again he can be a bit of a lazy beast at times.

Instead of checking to see if he was awake yet I turned to go see Gobber, since the man was supposed to have some more supplies for my armor in by now. I was on my way there when I saw instead Hiccup sitting up against the side of a house with ice held up to his head.

Normally, I'd sneak up to try to see what's wrong. I blame being raised for eight years with a dragon on that. This time though, since I caused it I walked up to him, realizing his eyes were closed as he leaned against the building before I crouched down in front of him. "Need some help?" I asked, and immediately his eyes shot open, obviously startled before he relaxed again, closing his eyes once more as he continued to hold the ice to his head.

"Good morning to you too, Thorunn." Hiccup muttered before I sat down next to him, leaning over and gently prying the hand that held the ice away from his head, trying to ignore the way his body tensed with my actions since by now, everyone was afraid of the Dragon girl's touch.

"Well, the swelling's going down. That's a good thing." I said before looking back down at his face to see his eyes focused on something other than my hands on his arm.

I followed his gaze and immediately released his arm, pulling my vest tighter to me to try to hide what he had been staring at from his gaze.

"I...would recommend continuing to ice it and maybe a nap if it's giving you a headache." I continued on from where I had stopped before standing up quickly, now wanting to get as far from here as possible.

"Uh...maybe we could..." I didn't get to hear him finish what he was going to say because fortunately his friends returned and I used that to flee the scene.

**Hiccup POV**

Smooth Hiccup, really smooth. I tried to get away from Snotlout and Tuffnut quickly, but they just continued to follow me, badgering me over and over about how I got hurt and who did it and if it would leave a scar.

Sometimes I really wish I could just push them to a Scauldron.

Fortunately Fishlegs came to my rescue at last. "Oh gods Hiccup, what happened to you? Alright, you two I need you to get me some plants." Fishlegs said as he turned to Snotlout and Tuffnut, and immediately they fled to make sure they wouldn't get caught up Fishlegs' occupation.

"Thanks Fishlegs." I said once they were gone, forcing a small laugh when he laughed at how easy it was to scare the two off.

"Any time, now what happened?" Fishlegs asked as I let him look at the welt on the back of my head before returning the ice to the spot.

"Well...Thorunn and I..." I didn't get to finish since Fishlegs immediately started to react before he even knew what I was going to say.

"Did she hurt you? Were you two flying and did you fall? Did her dragon attack you?" I finally clasped a hand over his mouth so I could speak.

"We were talking last night, I slipped and fell and she helped me. It's not that big of a deal, Fishlegs." I reminded as I watched him visibly relax in knowing that this wasn't intended upon me.

"So...where is she then?" Fishlegs asked and at that question it was my turn to tense up.

"She ran off." I muttered as I watched his brow furrow in confusion at my words.

"What happened?" Fishlegs asked as I sighed, the image popping back into my mind of what I'd seen. It's not like I meant to look down, but I still was surprised.

I was looking at the little freckles on Thorunn's collar bone when she had shifted to take my hand and look at my head, and that movement caused her tunic to pull down a bit. I wasn't trying to look, but my eyes caught raised white flesh on her tanned skin, and it didn't take me very long to realize that they were scars.

Unfortunately, I really couldn't see where the scars led to or started at, but I could see that they weren't normal scars. They were claw marks across her skin. And the moment she noticed that I saw them she immediately covered herself and ran.

"Wow, wonder what that's about." Fishlegs said as he scratched the back of his head in thought as we walked towards the academy.

"I don't know...but Fishlegs...I don't think these were just normal like bear or cat claw marks." I advised and at that Fishlegs' eyes widened, knowing where I was going with this one.

"A dragon? Attacked her?" Fishlegs asked to make sure I was really saying this.

"I don't know what Dragon, but hopefully I can talk with her." I muttered before wondering where she fled to.

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**Alright, now we're starting to get into the more exciting part of the story. Literally, I've been writing non-stop for nearly three days just to get to this part because I was so excited. Next chapter, I can promise you, will either have you on the edge of your seat, or begging for more.**

**Thank you once again to those of you who have read this far, hope you continue reading, and as always I do take requests to post ahead of my daily schedule. Just try sending a review, I might post up to three chapters in a day if I'm feeling up to it.**


	6. Bonding Over Pain

**Greetings once more! Boy have I got a chapter for you today! I'm not even going to bore you with this little introduction, go on and read already!**

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**Thorunn POV**

I could hear his roar plain as day, even hear Pythius roaring for me too, but right now I just need to keep away.

I reached the cove within no time, dropping in easily before walking over to the water, stripping off my vest and tunic as I walked before dropping down to my knees beside the water.

"Damned tunic, you weren't supposed to move." I muttered, really wanting to burn the clothing at the moment as my eyes fell on the three raised white scars that started up at the top of my chest and ran down past my rib cage, my finger tips ghosting over the gnarled flesh as I tried to keep the memory of what caused them at bay.

"No...never remember it. It's the past, forget." I muttered my mantra for the millionth time since I received the scarring to my body.

I was about to reach down and trace the causes of my pain with my fingertips again when I felt something nudge my lower back, looking back in surprise to see not my own dragon, but instead Hiccup's. "Toothless? Don't you know better than to sneak up on a half naked woman?" I asked the boy, and all he did was tilt his head before looking down at the marks on my flesh.

His eyes shifted back up to meet mine as they set, a look of worry and confusion setting in them before I pulled my tunic back over my skin.

"It's nothing boy, really." I tried to assure him again before another roar pierced the air, his worried gaze on me not lifting as I reached out to scratch under his chin for him in hopes that would put some of his worry to ease. Surprisingly, it did not though.

Toothless's gaze shifted off of me though when I heard something hit the water behind us, glancing behind us in time to be met with a pair of golden eyes that I hadn't seen in eight years and I stumbled backwards into Toothless.

This can't be happening, not now.

**Third Person POV**

Toothless was surprised to find Pythius's trainer in the cove, since when he had planned to come to the place today he thought he would be alone. But he was even more surprised when his friend from last night showed up and actually made the human girl in front of him fearful.

Thorunn pressed herself into his chest as he sat back, looking like she wanted to run as far away as she could as she glanced up at his eyes. Her fearful eyes turned to confused though when he saw him looking down at her in confusion as well.

"Toothless, why...why are you just sitting there? We need to go!" Thorunn advised the Night Fury as he tilted his head to the side in confusion as to why this human was so fearful of his friend, but then so comfortable with her more protective, somewhat aggressive when it comes to her, Boneknapper.

Toothless instead glanced over at his friend as she reached the shore, a curious look in her own golden eyes before she bounded over to him, and the male couldn't resist his urge as he jumped up and bounded over to her to greet her.

Thorunn stumbled backwards when Toothless pulled away from her and instead bounded over to the other dragon, both jumping on each other and nuzzling their maws against one another as she realized what was going on.

"Toothless...is...is this your...friend?" Thorunn's frail voice reached his ears and he diverted his attention back to the scared girl who was sprawled on the ground a few feet away from them.

This wasn't right, she shouldn't need to be afraid. His friend was nice, they played many nights since Pythius introduced them, and it was part of the reason why he looked forward to when the humans went to bed so he could see her.

Toothless trotted over to the girl and took her tunic gently between his teeth, helping her rise as he gave her a smile with his eyes, trying to assure her that she would be okay.

But little did the innocent dragon know that the two had already met, and their last meeting wasn't as nice as he would think his friend to be with humans. "No...no Toothless please." Thorunn murmured when she realized he was trying to nudge her towards his friend, who was now sitting on her hind legs watching them curiously, head tilted to the side in a manner that almost made her look like Toothless.

Toothless grumbled his assurance that she would be fine before giving one more nudge towards his fellow Night Fury, who proceeded to dawn a toothless smile upon recognizing the human that Toothless was nudging towards her.

Once a few feet away from his friend, Toothless stopped pushing the human, sitting back on his hind legs as his gaze flickered between the female Night Fury and the human girl in front of them, wondering what had her so skittish around his friend.

Thorunn's hands shot up to the scars that traversed her chest, stumbling back against Toothless as something seemed to click in the dragon's mind now. Those scars, those were dragon claws.

Green eyes going from the human to his friend, he mumbled something over to the other Night Fury, wanting to know right then if she was the cause of this human's injury.

Her once perked up ears drooped as Toothless realized now how they had met, and by the way her body language read to him, Toothless could only tell that his friend felt guilt over the acts that had taken place before he leaned down to be at eye level with the fearful human.

**Thorunn POV**

No, no I need to get away. I can't let her near me. As much as I tried to escape though Toothless just kept pushing me closer to his fellow Night Fury until I was feet away from it, and all I could do was stumble back against Toothless as my hands shot up to cover the scars that were left from my last encounter with this beast.

No dragon has ever harmed me willingly, no dragon except for this one the last time I saw her. I know that it was a flight or fight instinct too, but tearing a gash across my upper body shouldn't have been it's first choice.

I was about to turn and run when Toothless lowered his head to be at level with me, nudging his nose against my hands as his eyes held a pleading look in them. "No...Toothless I can't be near her." I plead, but all he did in response was whimper before turning his gaze to the other Night Fury.

I followed his gaze to see that she was now on all fours on the ground, tail wrapped around the side of her body and ears flat against her head. I didn't want to even brave looking into her eyes, but Toothless nudged me once more and my eyes met her own golden eyes.

Those eyes, last time I'd seen them they were enraged, a gaze that could instill fear into any viking's heart. But now...

The female Night Fury looked saddened, guilty almost and as much as I wanted to run and never look back, I felt my heart being tugged at by the sight. I know she gave me these scars, but I'm not heartless. Toothless nudged me forward once more, and this time I moved a few steps closer slowly before dropping down to my knees to be at level with this creature.

Her eyes met mine again, and a second later she let out a small whimper that could put any other person to tears or wanting to hug her. "You...you've been trying to find me, haven't you?" I asked carefully, earning a nod in response as I glanced back at Toothless, who only proceeded to watch us.

I turned back to the female as she let out another whimper, and unfortunately I yelled out when she moved forward, nudging her snout against my chest where my scars were. She shot backwards, fear evident in her eyes as I tried to control the racing of my heart, just then realizing that I had been clutching my tunic where it hid the scars.

Another look at the girl in front of me told me though that she was trying to apologize, and I reached a hand out to her. She froze, ears perking up in confusion before her gaze went from me to Toothless.

Toothless moved his head forward, grumbling something to her in their tongue, before I turned back to his friend.

Her ears remained perked up for a few more minutes as she just stared at my hand before they flattened and she tentatively took a step towards me.

"I...I forgive you...for this." I muttered as she moved closer to me, ears perking up as I spoke to her before she was sitting in front of me again.

The whole cove seemed to be in silence then for a while as our eyes locked, and I was met with curiosity, realizing that she was like Zu. This was the same gaze Zu gave to me when we met. She understood me. I let out a breath I didn't realize I had been holding, and in that second she leaned her head forward, her forehead meeting mine in that second.

I gasped for a second at the action, since the only other dragon who had ever approached me as such was Zu, before letting out a soft chuckle, reaching out and scratching her under the chin, laughing again when she immediately rolled over onto her side to get me to pay more attention to her.

Before I knew it, Toothless had me doing the same for him as they both laid on their sides and allowed me to scratch under their chins for them.

**Hiccup POV**

"Toothless! Come on where are you?" I called out as I walked through the forest, still searching for my runaway dragon.

Last I had seen him was when I got up this morning, and normally he comes to get me when he's ready to fly, but when I went to get him he was gone.

Fishlegs had told me he saw him running into the forest, so I've been out here searching for the big oaf for almost three hours now.

"Toothless! Come on we need to get to the academy boy!" I called again, walking around a large tree only to step back when I was greeted with Toothless sitting right in front of me, almost like he was guarding something. "Toothless, there you are." I said as I walked up to him, watching his ears perk up as he watched me.

Toothless chittered something to me as I reached up and patted him on the head.

"Why're you out here all alone? Going for a walk? We were supposed to be at the academy an hour ago bud." I reminded Toothless before I heard a roar nearby, not needing to look to Toothless to know that that was a Boneknapper. "Toothless, what's going on?" I asked, and when I tried to walk past him his wing opened, stopping me.

I glared up at Toothless for his actions, but he just gave me an innocent look as I tried again to walk past him, this time his tail wrapping around my waist and pulling me back.

"Toothless, enough you silly dragon. Let me go see what's going on." I argued as the roaring continued, and a second later another roar pierced the air, and I knew for a fact that that one was not Toothless because he was sitting right next to me. "Toothless?" I asked, confused for a moment before Toothless pulled me onto his back, letting me hook in before he took off running towards the village instead. "Ah Toothless you oaf!" I protested at his actions.

I am going to find out what's going on, even if it means I'm going to have to fight off Toothless just to get back into the forest.

**Thorunn POV**

I groaned as I sat up, head pounding as I opened my eyes to see what had happened. One second I was sitting there just watching the Night Fury snatch some fish from the pond, and the next I heard a furious roar and was sent sprawling halfway across the cove.

It was as I opened my eyes that I realized what had happened. Zu.

His tail lashed about behind him as he stood off with the Night Fury, barring his teeth at her and growling furiously at her. Looking over to the Night Fury she was in the same predicament, but she looked less likely to attack than Zu.

"Zu...Zu stop!" I yelled to him as I stood up, taking a step in their direction but he just roared at me in response, making me actually freeze in my steps for a second since he has never acted like this towards me before.

The Night Fury roared at him in response to his actions, surprising me since she and I weren't connected like I was with Zu, last time I'd seen her she was enraged by my sight. And now...

"Zu! Stand down!" I yelled more forcefully this time to him, ignoring his roar as I walked over to them, and with each step closer his eyes filled with more rage until I stood between him and the Night Fury.

I held my hand out between both of them, partly expecting Zu to lean into my touch but he just continued to glare at the Night Fury and me as well for coming between him and the unknown dragon that he still wanted to protect me from.

I glared right back at Zu when his eyes locked with mine, trying my best to convey to him that his attitude was not needed, when I felt cool, slick scales meet my other hand, looking back to see that the Night Fury had leaned her nose into my touch.

Unfortunately, Zu noticed this as well because he lunged, knocking me out of the way as he swung his tail towards the Night Fury.

I groaned as I was slammed into a tree, hitting the ground before I could fully realize that my companion had intentionally acted aggressively towards me.

I looked up to see Zu swing his tail at the Night Fury again, but she just jumped and dodged each attemptive strike, looking like she didn't want to injure him.

I forced myself to my feet, ignoring the protest my back gave from the injury that Zu had given me when he knocked me aside as I raised my fingers to my lips, giving a shrill whistle that always seemed to gain Zu's attention before.

His gaze flickered towards me for a brief moment before he roared at the Night Fury once more, charging towards her before a chase ensured around the Cove. "Zu enough! She's not a threat!" I yelled to him as I watched him try to chase the much faster female around the waters edge before realizing they were running straight for me.

He wouldn't trample me, granted when we first met he was a bit of a klutz, but he wouldn't run over me just to get to some other dragon he thought was threatening me. Right?

The Night Fury jumped over me easily, glancing back towards me before I realized that Zu wasn't going to stop just because I was in the way.

"Zu!" I yelled one more time before I shut my eyes, waiting for the inevitable blow of his body against my own. I was met with a roar instead though, and a second later I opened my eyes to see the Night Fury standing in front of me, having caught Zu's body with her own. She...she helped me?

Zu's furious eyes flickered between me and the Night Fury before I realized that his talon's were sunk into the Night Fury's side. "Zu!" I charged him this time, shoving him off roughly as the female dropped to the ground with a whimper.

Zu looked at me in shock for a second as he stumbled back, since I have never acted aggressively towards him before, before stomping away from me, letting out a roar as he continued to stomp around. I've seen him throw a tantrum before, but I couldn't tell this time if he was throwing a tantrum or boasting over how he had injured the Night Fury.

I turned to her as I saw the bright red blood seeping from her injury, dropping to my knees beside her as she whimpered again. "Hold on, it's my turn to help you now." I muttered quietly as I quickly pulled my tunic off, leaving my vest on as I pressed my tunic to her side quickly.

I glanced towards Zu to make sure he wasn't going to come back for a second attack to see him still stomping around throwing a fit, picking up a rock and chucking it in his direction. He glared at me as I motioned to him to leave.

"Go get Pythius and leave us be you brute!" I snapped at him when he refused to listen to me, his gaze softening for a second before with an angry roar he took off once more.

I don't even know if he's going to listen and bring Pythius back here, but I'm going to need help if I'm going to get this girl back to the village.

I glanced back down at the fallen Night Fury to see her eyes watching my hands, whimpering as I applied more pressure to the wound. "I know, I know it's gonna hurt girl." I muttered as her eyes locked with mine once more, and for the first time I saw genuine fear in her eyes. I could feel my heart breaking at the sight.

I glanced around, deciding we couldn't wait for Pythius.

"Come on, I need you to get up." I said as I motioned to her to rise, ignoring the own pain I was feeling from the injury Zu inflicted upon me as I maintained the pressure on the female's wound, glancing around once more as I realized that dusk was creeping up upon us.

The female gave a whine of protest as she rose and I quickly placed my hand on her snout to try to calm her. Her eyes locked with mine once more before I began to lead her out, knowing that this was going to be a long walk back.

The walk was slow at first, especially when we were trying to get out of the Cove, but soon we were at a better pace as I tried to keep pressure on her injury and ignore my own. I shivered as we were walking, just then remembering I was in nothing but my vest and wraps now and the sun was setting.

The female whimpered lightly before I felt something ghost across my skin, looking back to see she stretched out her wing to try to help me keep warm. I looked back to her eyes to see her trying to force a smile towards me. I let out a soft chuckle at the gesture.

"What a way to meet, huh girl?" I mused as we continued to walk, still trying to get over the fact that originally this same dragon slashed me across the chest with her claws but was now trying to help me fend off hypothermia.

The girl chittered something to me as her wing wrapped tighter around my smaller body.

"Don't worry, I'm gonna get you fixed up." I assured before realizing I still didn't know what to refer to her as, and seeing as how she's apparently been following me for eight years, I turned my gaze to her once more. "Well, I just realized something." I mused as I smiled at her, seeing the confusion in her golden eyes.

The Night Fury grumbled to me in her own tongue as we kept walking, and I glanced up at the darkening sky.

"I still don't know what to call you. I'm gonna need a name for you, huh?" I asked as her ears perked up at my words, before she nodded her head, earning a laugh from me since not even Zu understood me this well at times.

Though, then again, he's a stubborn male dragon.

"Well, let's have a look at you then." I said as I kept my hand firm over the bloody tunic that was keeping her from bleeding out and turned to get a better look at this newer dragon beside me.

She was a bit smaller than Hiccup's Night Fury, but I guess that was to be expected since a lot of dragon species had smaller females. "Well, you're a bit smaller than Toothless." I teased lightly, and at that she rolled her eyes at me while I chuckled at her reaction. I yelped when she swatted me with her tail. "Well that's not very nice." I continued, and I fell into full on laughter when she stuck her tongue out at me.

This girl, she's much different from the dragon I met eight years ago. When I first met her, she was extremely hostile, but then again she was cornered. I guess it was just a wrong place at the wrong time deal.

"Your scales are beautiful, midnight black." I mused, and at that she turned her head and licked me. "You're welcome." I said with a chuckle before I noticed the village coming into view. "We're almost there." I advised as her gaze flickered forward, and she stopped abruptly.

I looked into her eyes to see a fearful gaze over the village, and I truthfully can't blame her. Most places would kill her or have left her to die out here in the woods.

"Don't worry, you'll be safe here." I assured as her worried gaze met my own, and I moved forward to press my forehead to her own. "I promise, you helped me, now it's my turn to help you." I murmured to the girl, smiling when her features relaxed a bit more before we continued walking.

It was as we reached the edge of the village that I could hear roaring coming from the great hall, not surprised that Zu just took off and didn't even try to get Pythius for me like I had asked. He's probably in there complaining to the other dragons.

"Come on, this way. I've got somewhere nice and warm where we can get you fixed up." I said before checking around to make sure no one was nearby and ushering the female towards my house.

We fortunately weren't seen, as far as I know, while we headed to my house and I quickly lead her into the house and over near the fire, letting her lay down as I rushed over to my room to grab something to try to help her.

I ignored the bang when the front door opened, coming back out to see a very worried looking Pythius now sitting beside the Night Fury. "Pythius, go get Toothless for me. I need more bandages." I called to him before bringing out some stuff to clean the wound.

Fortunately, Pythius didn't protest and was out and flying off to get him before I knew it.

I sat back down beside the Night Fury as her eyes watched my hands remove the tunic from her injury, whimpering when it was gone as I tried not to cringe myself at the sight.

"It'll be alright, don't worry." I muttered as I tried to not panic at the sight of the three claw marks that went across her side. She leaned forward with a whimper and pressed her nose into my chest, chittering something to me as something clicked in my mind.

She's trying to tell me we're matching. I have three claw marks on my chest, now she has three claw marks over her ribs. I let out a soft chuckle at her association before beginning to cleanse the wound with water.

I was still gently washing out her wound when I felt her tail move against my back, causing me to flinch when it went across my own injury. She whimpered, obviously now aware that I too was injured like her.

"It's alright girl, I'm fine." I assured as she moved her head closer to me, worry still evident in her eyes even if I told her I was alright.

A few minutes later Pythius came bursting back in, rushing over to the Night Fury as I glanced out the window, watching Toothless rush down the street towards the house. I couldn't help the chuckle that slipped out, since now that dusk had fallen he almost blended in with everything.

Something seemed to click in my mind as I thought this, turning back to the Night Fury on the floor in front of me. "Well, how's about name ideas for you then." I offered, watching her offer me a smile at the idea as Toothless finally burst into the house, carrying bandages in his mouth.

Dropping the bandages in front of me, Toothless rounded the female and laid down behind her, worried eyes meeting hers as I realized that they must know each other much more than I thought.

I began to slowly bandage up the girl as she, Toothless and Pythius began talking, finding myself a bit lonely for the first time since they were all so well acquainted, but I'm just silently bandaging up the girl.

"Well, I think I've got a few name ideas for you." I offered once the three stopped talking with one another for a few minutes, earning all three of them looking towards me as I finished bandaging up the girl's wound, sitting back as our eyes locked once more.

"Well, I'll offer a few, and then I'll let you pick. Sound good?" I asked, and in response she nodded her head, chittering her agreement as she tried to stand up, but roared out in pain as I shot forward, helping her lay back down.

"No, no just stay right there. I'll sit right here and tell you then." I said as I moved over so I could sit in front of her instead in hopes she wouldn't try to move again.

All three had their eyes focused on me in anticipation as I wiped my hands off on one of the rags I had been using to clean her wound, laughing when they gave impatient grumbles to me not saying anything yet.

"Okay, okay." I held up my hands in defeat before my eyes locked with the curious golden ones in front of me. "How's about...Damson?" I offered, and when she reacted by spitting and shaking her head in disgust I laughed, never having seen a Dragon react like that before.

"Oh but that would have been so pretty." I teased, dodging her wing when she tried to swat me before Toothless nudged me to continue trying. "Midnight?" I offered, leaning back on my hands as I waited for a reaction.

She tilted her head to the side in thought before shaking her head in protest, not too interested in that one either. "Aww, thought you would like that with your scales." I muttered before glancing out the window, hearing people yelling for Toothless.

"It's past dusk now Toothless, you might wanna..." I was cut short when the girl in front of me began chittering and flapping her wings excitedly. "Huh? What's wrong?" I asked, glancing to the other Night Fury in hopes he could tell me, but he just seemed as confused as I am.

She flapped her wings again, tail swaying now behind her in excitement as I thought over what I had been saying that could have gotten her so excited, when finally it hit me.

"Dusk?" I asked carefully, and at that she let out a roar, scaring Pythius and Toothless as I leaned forward, her leaning into my touch as she nodded her head in excitement.

Dusk? Huh, that actually sounds kind of nice for her. The last time I had seen her had been at dusk, and dusk just set now, so I guess I can understand why she wants that name.

"Dusk it is then." I agreed, jumping up though when she tried to leap forward at me to make sure she didn't hurt herself by moving.

**Third Person POV**

Toothless smiled at Dusk and Pythius when the human finally fell asleep beside the fire, beside Dusk none the less. He knew that they should have forced her to tend to her own injuries, but human's do need a fair amount of sleep.

He more so was happy right now though that his two good friends were now living right down the street from him. Or at least he hopes both of them will be. He felt something in his chest pang upon a glance at the bandages that were on Dusk's side though.

He knew he should have ran back when he saw Zu heading in their direction. But unfortunately Hiccup needed his help with the hatchling's training, and he couldn't risk letting Hiccup ruin the sweet moment he had left Dusk and Thorunn in when he left them.

Toothless looked around the small house. From the human contraptions that were already there to the three women huddled around the small fire.

More so though his piercing green eyes landed on Dusk and Thorunn as Dusk opened up her wing to cover up the smaller, more frail human that chose to sleep out near the fire with them.

Toothless knew he made the right choice when he decided to nudge the girls together. They may have had a bad meeting, but that shouldn't stop anyone from becoming friends. Look at him and his human after all.

Toothless swished his tail in front of him to look at the mechanical tail fin that Hiccup had made for him, eyes closing as he thought back to their meeting when the boy was only fourteen. Hiccup had been the cause of his tail fin being ripped off and him losing his ability to fly alone, but the boy quickly made up for it by making a new tail for him.

Yes, just because a meeting starts out bad that doesn't mean they can't be friends. And if looking at the two resting comfortably together meant anything, he has a feeling that even if he hadn't reintroduced them, they'd still have made up all on their own.

Toothless looked over the three sleeping girls in the room once more before slowly standing up, leaving the house quietly to go back to his own human. He jumped back when he opened the door to find Zu sleeping in the yard out front, but carefully crept around the grumpy Boneknapper to head on home.

Fortunately, Hiccup was already in bed asleep by the time he got home. He had rushed out of the house when Pythius had come and gotten him. He was expecting the teen to either follow him, or to be waiting up to scold him when he got home.

Leaping over his sleeping trainer, Toothless slowly gripped the boy's blanket, which he had managed to kick off in his sleep, with his teeth and pulled it back over the boy, smiling when he mumbled in his sleep and held it tighter to his form.

Feeling very tired now and wanting to join all his friends, Toothless crawled into his bed, curling up to sleep as his thoughts instead drifted to the three girls down the street from him.

Toothless had been on the edge of falling asleep when an idea crept into his mind, a smile crossing his maw as he opened an eye to look over at the human boy sleeping across the room from them.

Zu couldn't fight Dusk in the village, and especially not if there were other people who knew she was around. Maybe he could make sure she can stay a bit longer.

He hasn't seen another Night Fury since he was a hatchling anyways, he doesn't know if he's exactly ready to let Dusk leave anyways.

A yawn slipped out of the dragon's maw as he curled up a little tighter on his bed, deciding that he'd try to help the girls a bit more.

Eyes sliding shut and a smile on his lips, his mind was set. He really was taking after his trainer apparently, because he wasn't going to let these girls leave until everyone was one hundred percent happy.

* * *

**I told you it would be full of excitement, didn't I? Couldn't really have more excitement without a better background on Thorunn, and bringing in another Night Fury.**

**Oh, just to be clear, I picked Dusk because as I was writing it I just so happened to look outside as dusk was setting, and figured hey, that sounds like a pretty good idea for a Night Fury's name.**

**Anyways, thanks again for reading, hope you enjoyed it as much as I do writing this.**


	7. Trust

**Greetings once more! I won't say much this time, because I'm excited for this chapter and want you to get right to it, so enjoy!**

* * *

**Hiccup POV**

Where does my dragon keep going? This is the second day where he has just taken off on me.

I walked around the village in hopes of finding him, but was shocked when I instead saw Thorunn. No one's seen her in days, I actually was getting ready to go check her house. I was about to walk over to her when I noticed bandages on her neck, shocking me since last time I saw her she was completely fine.

She had her back to me when I walked up to her, and it was then that I noticed she was limping slightly as well. "Thorunn?" She jumped when I nudged her shoulder, spinning around to face me as I noticed she was carrying medical supplies.

"Oh, don't sneak up on me like that. It won't end well Hiccup." Thorunn said before we both heard a roar, and I saw a concerned look in her eyes for a second.

"Thorunn, what happened to you?" I asked as I motioned towards her bandaged neck, wondering if that was her only injury though because of her limp that I had noticed.

"What? The bandage? Oh nothing, just Zu roughhousing, nothing to worry about." Thorunn said quickly before I watched her run off, dropping something though as she was running.

I walked over and picked it up to find that it was some of our dragon medicine, surprised since I only saw injuries on her. Is Zu hurt too?

I was about to go find her again when I noticed Toothless creeping out around down the street, narrowing my eyes at him when he saw me and realize I spotted him. "Toothless! Get back here!" I yelled after him as I took off after the sneaky dragon, and he immediately started running as well.

I must be getting faster with this leg, since I managed to follow him all the way towards the cove in the woods, surprised he would go this way since no one really comes out here anymore. Well, besides us when I need some time to cool off about stuff.

I got closer to the Cove when I started to hear dragon's chittering and grumbling, figuring it was probably just Toothless, but then I heard a person's voice.

I finally got to the cove to see Toothless down by the water, Pythius beside him roaring and grumbling to him.

I was about to go down there to get the sneaky dragon when I heard flapping, looking up in time to see something dropping into the cove.

"Alright, I think that's enough for today!" My head shot up when I heard her voice, looking down to see Thorunn leaning up against a tree and watching the dragon swoop down. It was as it landed that I finally felt shock hit me like Toothless running me over for a barrel of fish.

Landed right next to Thorunn was another Night Fury, but a smaller one than Toothless. She walked up to Thorunn, roared, then plopped down, her head now on Thorunn's legs as Thorunn began to do something with her side.

Okay, I have to go down there now.

I slid down the side of the cove gently, trying to be as quiet as I could, but as I hit the bottom my prosthetic snapped a stick underneath it, and the other Night Fury's head shot up, looking in my direction before growling.

"Whoever's there, come out now or she might come get you." Thorunn's voice drifted to me, and I slowly raised my hand, stepping out into the open so she could see me, and the moment she did her eyes widened. "Hiccup?" Thorunn asked, obviously surprised to see me.

"Well hello to you too madame." I called as my eyes fell from her to the Night Fury laying her head in her lap once more.

"H...how'd you find me?" Thorunn asked, and I realized that she was actually afraid to see me, surprised that it actually hurt me a little by how she was afraid of me since almost no one was afraid of me.

"Actually, I was following my run away dragon over there. Didn't know I'd find you over here." I answered truthfully as I walked over towards her.

Each step I took I noticed the dragon in her lap watching me, looking ready to pounce on me if I took one wrong step even. I finally reached her, and it was then that I noticed what her hands had been doing on the dragon's side.

Bandages covered the Night Fury's side, looking like the poor thing had been in a major fight as I knelt down to be at level with them. "What happened?" I asked as I nodded my head towards the dragon she was tending to.

Her eyes met mine, sadness filling those glowing green eyes that I had been used to seeing full of confidence and happiness. I felt it tug at my heart a little to see how she was actually hurting for this dragon. "Zu." That was all she said, and at that I moved over to help her remove the bandages, biting my lip when I saw the three gashes across the poor thing's rib cage. "He got...over protective of me." Thorunn murmured as I turned to look at her, surprised by what I saw.

Her eyes were on the Night Fury in front of us, but I could see the look of hopelessness, looking like a little child instead of a dragon trainer now.

"Mind telling me the story?" I asked quietly as I gently took the soiled bandages off fully to replace with the new ones she had next to her.

She was quiet as she spoke, eyes locked with the Night Fury, and I even saw her fingers trembling slightly as she handed me some disinfectant. "I...I've never seen him like that before." Thorunn muttered as I finished replacing the bandages on Dusk's side, looking back to her. My eyes landed on the bandages on her neck though this time.

"Thorunn, did he do that to you?" I asked quietly as I tapped her on the shoulder, not wanting to touch the actual injury.

I looked back at Dusk when she let out a whine, and I was in for more shock when Thorunn laid her head down on hers, trembling slightly.

"H...hey it's alright." I murmured quietly, moving over closer to her to try to help her calm down. I've never been around a girl in distress before though, since Astrid being the way she is doesn't show weakness to anyone. I laid a hand on her back, and she let out a slight hiss as I realized the injury just wasn't her neck.

She sat up slowly, pulling her vest off as she did. I was about to ask her how bad it was when she instead began to pull off her tunic, and by habit I quickly covered my eyes. "It's alright, Hiccup. I have bindings on." Thorunn assured me, and I slowly uncovered my eyes only to feel sick at the sight I saw.

Thorunn obviously cared more about helping Dusk than herself, since her bandages looked rushed and like they haven't been changed since she put them there. "Thorunn..." I murmured quietly as I reached a hand out, touching the raised welts that came out from under the bandages but pulling back when she flinched at my touch.

"He...he knocked me flying when he went after Dusk. I hit a tree pretty hard. The time before that I don't even know what happened." Thorunn explained as she kept her head down, obviously in distress about what her companion had done to her, since last time when I saw them together they were the best of friends.

"You need to have these changed." I advised as I grabbed the extra bandages to help her, trying not to pull away when she flinched at my touch again. "Thorunn...are you afraid of me?" I asked quietly as I began to remove the bandages, setting them over with Dusk's own bandages.

She was silent for a little while, so I guess that was her way of saying yes that she was. "No." I looked towards her face when I heard her frail voice speak up. "If you're asking because of my flinching when you move towards me, no I'm not. It's just...people." Thorunn muttered as I looked towards her face in confusion about her words.

"People?" I asked, stopping her when she tried to turn to face me so I could finish removing the rest of her bandages.

"I...I cant...tell you Hiccup." Thorunn murmured, and I was surprised by how hurt it made me feel to hear she couldn't trust me with that information. I mean, I've been trying my best to make her feel welcome here on Berk, haven't I?

We were silent for a little while after that as I worked to get rid of the bandages, trying to ignore the sick feeling I got over seeing that Zu had injured his companion in such a way. She had cuts and bruises running from her neck down to her lower back, and this was all just because he got protective of her.

I slowly put the new bandages over her wounds as she scratched Dusk under the chin, actually chuckling each time she purred at the menstruation's. "Thorunn, you know you can trust me." I advised her as I finished placing the last bandage on her back, watching as she pulled her tunic back on and then her vest.

She turned to face me when done and I noticed she was actually a bit more relaxed now than she had been before. "I know. It's just...hard." Thorunn said as I yet again looked at her in confusion. "When you've lived eight years with only dragons, then finally meet someone who doesn't want to just kill them...it's hard to get used to that." Thorunn explained as the realization hit me finally.

"I'm not like those other vikings. I don't plan to ever hurt any of the dragons, or you for that matter." I assured her, and it was after that that her eyes met mine, glowing once more as I found myself yet again ensnared.

"You promise?" Thorunn asked, and I found myself smiling at her over how careful she was not only for just herself but the dragons as well.

"I give you my word. I won't ever do anything to hurt you, or Zu, or Dusk since from what I see, you've got yourself a new friend here." I said with a smile down at the female Night Fury who was just watching us in curiosity, flashing my a smile that reminded me of Toothless when I was done talking.

I turned back to Thorunn, only to gasp when she leaned forward, forehead pressing against mine for a split second before she retreated, cursing herself quietly as I felt my face heat up at the gesture. "I...sorry I'm too used to living with just dragons." Thorunn said as I turned to face somewhere else, surprised that I was actually getting nervous with this girl.

I forced a chuckle before seeing Toothless watching nearby, glaring at him when he began his chortling laugh that he always does when I start getting flustered over things. "It's fine, you do it with Zu all the time so I'm not surprised." I said with a shrug before standing up to go swat Toothless when he got Pythius to join him in his laughter.

**Third Person POV**

Thorunn watched the teen stomp over towards his dragon before turning her attention to the now sniggering dragon in her own lap. "What?" Thorunn asked as her eyes locked with Dusk's.

Dusk leaned up until she was in the human's face before laughing once more, sticking her tongue out at her when she noticed the human wasn't very amused by her poking fun at her own blunder.

"Oh hush you. Or should I go bring _Toothless_ over here." Thorunn asked, winking at the dragon before yelping when it earned her a swat with the tail, laughing though when the female Night Fury buried her face into her lap.

The girls turned their attention back to the men on the other side of the cove as they heard them begin to wrestle, watching Hiccup throw himself at Toothless only for the dragon to just walk over and drop let him drop into the water. "Toothless!" Hiccup protested at the sneaky dragon's prank against him.

Both men gave a glance over towards the tree when they heard the two woman laughing at them, Hiccup not so amused but Toothless puffing his chest out with pride over being smart enough to outwit his trainer.

"Got quiet the gentleman there, ya do." Thorunn teased her female companion lightly, laughing when the girl jumped up to get her for that comment and jumping up herself to run from her.

Thorunn quickly ran towards the water, jumping onto Toothless to use him as her shield. "Save me, oh night in black armor!" Thorunn cried happily as she held onto Toothless's neck, confusing the poor male before he realized she was being chased by Dusk.

Considering if he should actually help, or leave her to Dusk, he decided for the latter just to see what would happen, shaking her off quickly but not thinking she would go flying into the water beside Hiccup.

"Toothless, really? She has bandages on!" Hiccup chastised as he quickly took Thorunn's arm to help her out of the water, rolling his eyes as both of the Night Fury's on shore just laughed at them, Pythius rolling her eyes at the scene though before taking flight to go get some fresh cod.

"Oh, thank you Pythius for leaving me here!" Thorunn called after the fleeing Boneknapper before turning her attention to the Night Fury's instead. "Now, who should I punish first." Thorunn mused, dawning a devious smile as both dragon's ears perked up, exchanging looks before they quickly fled towards the exit.

Hiccup couldn't help but laugh at how the dragon's actually thought she was being serious. Or at least, he was pretty sure she wasn't being serious. Up until he felt arms wrap around his neck from behind. "So, that leaves you to take the blame for your dragon then, Dragon Trainer." Thorunn purred deviously in the teen's ear, and he didn't know what caused it but he felt his face flush from her tone and her close proximity.

"Hey, I redid your bandages for you. I'm exempt from being blamed here." Hiccup reminded as he quickly got out of the girl's grip, retreating towards the exit as well before seeing Thorunn shoot past him, wondering how in the name of Thor she could manage to move that fast even when injured.

"Oh no, he's your dragon. You pay for it." Thorunn said deviously as Hiccup gulped at the look she held, knowing he should run now.

One dragon's ears perked up at the sound of a male yelling down below, glancing up at it's rider as Astrid realized that was Hiccup, swooping down only to backtrack upon seeing who he was with, feeling her temper spark upon seeing the brunette girl with him.

Stormfly chittered up at her rider upon sensing that she wasn't very happy by the sight, but all Astrid did was lead her back to the village, and the moment they touched ground she picked up the nearest weapon and chucked it at the nearest wall, breathing heavy with rage.

Stormfly backed away a little upon seeing this angry act, unsure of what to do of her trainer since she hadn't been this mad about anyone in a long time. She stood back and watched as she just stomped around for a little while, muttering curses under her breath every so often, before finally taking her to get some dinner, much to the dragon's glee over that.

Stormfly licked her lips eagerly as she watched Astrid angrily tear apart the chicken that she was going to feed to her, waiting for her to throw it to her as the blonde wished it wasn't the chicken she was tearing apart but someone else entirely.

"I mean...where does she get off!" Astrid finally burst as she threw the chicken to her dragon, who caught it eagerly, licking her lips again as she swallowed it as she waited for the next one.

This girl, she was getting under his skin since the day she walked onto the island with her oh so fancy Boneknappers. Astrid really hoped that one day the Boneknapper's would just whirl on her, or something.

Especially for the way she was gradually winning over _her_ Hiccup.

Really, she knows that they haven't been as close lately. She's felt bad about it, but they've all just been so busy with training the rug rats. And now he has something else keeping him occupied and it was that seclusive know it all lunk head.

Astrid threw the next chicken to Stormfly angrily, tearing into the next one as her anger continued to rise.

Laughter seemed to bounce off the houses of Berk as two teens walked down the streets, their Night Fury friends bounding around them and playing happily together as well as the humans continued talking and laughing with one another.

"So...so then Zu...he just...dropped him in with the month old cod. Oh gods, I've never heard a man screaming for a dragon to save him before then!" Thorunn chimed through her laughter as Hiccup himself was in an uproar with laughter beside him, wishing he could have as many adventures as Thorunn has so far in her life.

The two were still talking and laughing as they reached the end of the road, unaware of an older, more gruff man standing in the doorway of the house as he watched the two teens, a small smile forming on his face at his son standing their with the heir to the Murderous tribe.

"Well, I'd invite you in...but I don't know how my dad would react." Stoick's focused more on their conversation upon hearing his name be mentioned, wondering what his son was going on about now.

"Ah, overprotective father of his son huh? Can't blame him, you're kinda small for a viking." Thorunn teased, laughing when Hiccup glared playfully at her for the comment.

"I'm not small, I'm almost taller than the rest of the trainers here." Hiccup argued as Stoick wondered who his son got his knack to easily be distracted from.

Oh wait, he got everything from his mother from how he's been most of his life.

"No though my dad just...he tend to...cause a scene a bit when I'm around." Hiccup said as Stoick's eyebrows rose at his son's words, wondering what he meant by that. He didn't cause a scene whenever he was around.

"How? Trying to give the old "You're my heir so you have to be this way" speech whenever you're around?" Thorunn asked as Hiccup scratched the back of his neck tentatively.

While that was one of the things his father did, the other was embarrass him around girls. More so it was Astrid though, since his father knew that they were together.

He just didn't want his father to embarrass him in front of this girl that he was trying to get to trust him right now though.

"Hiccup." Oh no. Hiccup shrunk a bit upon hearing his father's gruff voice, looking up to see his father walking down the steps towards him. "I see you brought a pretty young lass home tonight, how are ya Thorunn?" Stoick asked with a warm smile down at the brunette as she looked between the chief and his son.

"I'm doing better than I've been tonight, sir." Thorunn advised as she tried not to laugh at how Hiccup was trying to signal to her to try to get away from the area as fast as she could.

"Better than ya been? Don't tell me my son here's been doing something to harm or upset ya now." Stoick said as Hiccup buried his face in his hands in defeat, knowing that one way or another he was stuck with his father here possibly ruining what could have been a nice finish to the day he spent with Thorunn.

"No sir, I just had an injury while working with Zu the other day. In fact, he actually helped me earlier with the bandages." Thorunn advised, since she didn't need to live there for very long to hear the stories about how Hiccup would cause either a lot of problems, or destroy a lot of the stuff in the town.

"Oh did he now?" Stoick asked as he raised an eyebrow at his son, a bit surprised with that since normally his son only tended his own wounds or the dragon's if they were injured. "Well then, how's about ya come in for a bit, maybe a drink for the lass." Stoick offered as he turned to go back up to the door.

Hiccup quickly began moving his hand across his neck to motion to her to object the offer and go quick, but all Thorunn did in response was smile at him. "I don't know sir, I wouldn't want to be a burden this late." Thorunn called after the chief innocently, watching as Hiccup relaxed a bit at her answer.

"Ah it's no trouble at all, will give me a chance to hear what you two have been up to all day." Stoick said before holding the door open for the young heir, glancing between the two children before Hiccup walked up the stairs, head hung as he passed his father.

Once inside Stoick sent Hiccup to get some tea for the three of them, sitting down opposite Thorunn as he took notice of the bandages peaking out on her neck and the way her eyes seemed to flicker about in curiosity.

"So, how're you enjoying Berk then lass?" Stoick asked once Hiccup returned with the drinks, sitting down with a huff since he knew this was going to be a long night.

"I'm still trying to get used to it, sir. I've been living off the land for so long, it's still a bit hard to even get used to sleeping in a house instead of under my dragon's wing." Thorunn said as Stoick chuckled at her statement, not knowing much about her but figuring she's been away from home for longer than she originally told him.

"Well, how's your father then? Haven't seen him in many a year now." Stoick said as he took a sip of his drink, unaware of the way the girl's body tensed at the mention of her father. The other man sitting at the table did notice though.

"He...he's fine. I guess. I haven't seen him in a while." Thorunn muttered before taking another sip of her drink.

"Ah, tis a shame. I know Hiccup would be at a loss without me." Stoick said, and at that his boy's head shot up at the blatant false statement, just then noticing the devious look in his father's eyes as he glanced in his direction.

"I can imagine, sir." Thorunn said, trying not to giggle at the chief's words about his son since now Thorunn noticed what Hiccup meant by embarrassing him. She had to admit though, it was a bit funny.

"Ay, last time I left him in charge, I came back to him stumbling about going "Dad, dad, I need you. I can't run the tribe alone. I need you dad." Quiet a shame, I mean, you were sixteen for Thor's sake, boy." Stoick said as Hiccup gripped his cup tighter, aware of his face turning a deep scarlet red now but deciding that if it came to it, he could just tell Thorunn that he was getting a bit stifled in the warm house.

If it were possible, his face grew even redder when Thorunn began to giggle at his father's words.

"Now, I don't remember it like that." Hiccup spoke up, but neither seemed to notice as his father just continued on with another story about him when he was little.

"Now this boy, he's never been very good with the ladies mind you." Stoick began, and at that Hiccup wanted to jump up and cover his father's mouth because he knew where his father was going with that statement.

"Oh really? I hadn't noticed, sir." Thorunn said as she kept her eyes glued to this insightful chief in front of her, unable to deny that he brought her to more laughter with his words than her own father ever did.

"No, now a days you wouldn't. But back when he was barely ten..." Stoick cut short upon hearing something crash, looking over to see his son's cup shattered on the floor.

"Oh oops, I dropped my cup. Dad, you mind helping me clean it up." Hiccup said through his teeth, trying to control himself to make sure he didn't give away that he intentionally wanted his father to stop talking.

"In a second boy, let me finish the story for the lass here." Stoick said with a dismissive wave at his offspring, smiling when he realized that he was getting to the boy now. It will teach him not to talk about him behind his back hopefully though. "Now, as I was saying. Barely ten, meets this pretty little lass at the docks that's visiting with her tribe." Stoick continued as Hiccup dropped his head onto the table in front of him, both of the other vikings at the other end looking to him in surprise.

"Hiccup, what are ya doing?" Thorunn asked curiously, giggling when he just grumbled in response since by now he knew it was a lost cause to try to stop his father from speaking about his hiccup of a past.

"As I was saying, he met this little lass and invited her over for a spell. As he's walking away, he get's his trousers caught in one of the clamps we use to hold the nets, and before we know it his trousers are flying like a flag and he's standing there in nothing but his scivvies for a moment before realizing what's happened because the lass begins laughing." Stoick finished, laughter bubbling up as he finishes the story, Thorunn joining in on the laughter since she'd never heard of anyone doing that before.

The two laughing vikings looked up when they heard a slam, glancing down the table to see Hiccup gone as Stoick smiled, knowing he just retreated to his bedroom. "Is he okay?" Thorunn asked as the older chief finished off his drink.

"He's fine, just doesn't like a good ol' story time." Stoick said with a smile before excusing himself to go get himself some mead, letting the girl know that if she wants she can go on up to say good night to his son before she heads home.

Upstairs Hiccup was hitting his head against his desk again and again, cursing his father under his breath for ruining the night. All he wanted was to walk home and say good night with the girl, hopefully earn her trust, but no. His father has to go and tell the story of how he was left standing their in his underwear while a girl laughed at him.

Oh why did he have to stay on Berk? He should have taken off with Toothless, gone exploring or something. Then he wouldn't be stuck with his father embarrassing him every chance he got.

Hiccup stopped banging his head against his desk when he heard a soft knock at his door, knowing that wasn't his father since his father didn't even knock. He got up and walked over, only to regret it when the moment their eyes locked, she began giggling again. "Yeah, yeah, laugh it up." Hiccup grumbled before turning to go back to his desk.

Thorunn covered her mouth this time, as she followed him in, watching him sit down at his desk and drop his head onto the wood once more. "I...I'm sorry. It's just...your foreheads all red now." Thorunn mumbled as she tried to keep herself from laughing again. When he just dropped lifted his head and dropped it onto the desk again, she walked over to stand beside him.

"Now you see why I told you to go." Hiccup grumbled before feeling small fingers on his arm, looking up to see Thorunn trying to stop him from intentionally hurting himself.

"It wasn't that bad, all he did was tell a story. Everyone does something embarrassing at one point in their life." Thorunn assured, eyes locking with Hiccup's as he actually felt himself relax a little more at her words.

"I...guess you're right." Hiccup mumbled before glancing behind them as he heard his dragon crawl into the window, the Night Fury freezing in his steps when he saw the two still awake. "Well thank you for joining us Toothless." Hiccup said in response before the dragon went over to his own bed, figuring he just walked in on them talking and should have left them be but wanting to lay down.

"I should probably take that as my sign to go then, let you get some sleep after what your dad did to you." Thorunn said, turning to head to the door as Hiccup shot a glare at Toothless for interrupting before standing up to walk Thorunn out. "Thanks for having me over for a bit." Thorunn said as they reached the front door, both unaware of the older chief sitting just inside the house as they stood on the steps.

"Don't need to thank me, was my Dad I mean." Hiccup said as he rubbed the back of his neck, still wishing that his father had just left them alone to say their good night's earlier so she wouldn't have ever heard about one of his most embarrassing events of his childhood.

"Well, thank you, none the less. Especially for...you know earlier." Thorunn murmured, nodding towards the bandages that now covered half of her back.

Hiccup smiled as he realized how this girl that he had met weeks ago, who at the time was confident and suave as she soared in on her Boneknapper, was in fact much more frail than he would have ever assumed, or at least when it came to vikings.

"Again, don't need to thank me. Just...take better care of yourself, alright?" Hiccup said as he carefully reached out to tap the bandages on her neck, mildly surprised when Thorunn didn't flinch away from his touch this time like she had done before.

Stoick continued to watch the two teens, unable to hear them from inside the house but somehow, he could tell that his son was having a tender moment with this young lass, a smile forming beneath his red beard since he had begun to give up on his hopes that his son would learn how to better handle women.

Especially after the whole Astrid debacle where she'd be sweet on him one day, then absolutely hating him the next.

"I should be going, have to go feed Zu since he's been hiding in the house all day." Thorunn said as her gaze fell from Hiccup's warm green eyes, unsure of what this burning sensation was that she was feeling in the pit of her stomach but glad that it went away when her gaze diverted from him.

"Are you sure you'll be okay with him?" Hiccup's voice was soft as he asked this, since he didn't know if he wanted to leave her alone with the aggressive dragon after a look at what he did to her back. Thorunn's quick nod of assurance did nothing to make him feel any better about it either.

"We just need to...reconnect I guess. He won't hurt me again, Hiccup. He's been with me since I was nine." Thorunn reminded the teen as her eyes flickered up to meet his again, surprised when she noticed the worry laced across his face since never had anyone worried for her besides her own dragon. Or, at least no one had worried about her in the eight years she's been on her own.

"Well...if you need anything, or help with him, just let me know. Okay?" Hiccup murmured to the brunette in front of him, already sure that she was going to reject his help, but surprised when she forced a smile up at him, unable to keep the smile off his own face as she nodded her head in agreement to coming to get him if she needed someone.

Thorunn glanced back in the direction of her house at the sound of her dragon roaring for her, before back at Hiccup, part of her fearful of what could happen with Zu, but the other part of her glad that if something did, she could come to Hiccup for help.

Hiccup was about to say his good night and go back inside to prepare for bed when Thorunn gave him the biggest surprise of the night, stepping forward and slipping her arms around his abdomen in a hug as he felt his face flush at the gesture. "Thank you, Hiccup." Thorunn murmured against his tunic before just as quickly pulling away.

Hiccup watched silently as she retreated down the street towards her house, his worry for her slowly evaporating as he thought over how it felt to have her smaller arms encircle him as a thank you.

* * *

**Ah, at last the bonding begins. Normally I don't make it take this long for two characters to start forming a bond. Heck, she made a quicker bond with a dragon than a human. Though, can't blame her, I'd love to have a dragon of my own.**

**Anyways, thanks as always for reading! I hope you enjoyed it as much as I did writing it down for you.**


	8. The Challenge

**Greetings loyal readers! Have I got some excitement in store for you today! I don't even want to give my normal intro, since I just want you all to get right to the chapter. Enjoy!**

* * *

Hiccup slipped back inside the house after a few minutes of collecting his thoughts, wanting to go to bed. The door shutting with a soft squeak, he turned, only to yelp in shock as he was met with a large figure in front of him. "Dad, don't do that." Hiccup gasped as he relaxed upon seeing it was only his father.

"Now, normally I'd give ya a quick word about manning up, but after that...ah boy you've put quiet a few worries to rest tonight son." Stoick said as he clasped his hand over his boy's shoulder, chest swelling with pride for his offspring.

Hiccup looked up at his father in confusion, wondering how much mead he had drunk tonight so far. "What are you talking about?" Hiccup asked as he tried to see if he could smell the mead on his father even to see if it was just the alcohol in his system making him ramble.

"That young lass. Ah, I've seen you with Astrid, quiet a shame about her. But Thorunn, boy I thought you'd never learn how to treat a woman proper. Quiet a fine one there too, just have to ask if you plan on actually trying to woo the dear lass." Hiccup felt his face flush with heat upon hearing his fathers words and realizing that he had been watching him talk with Thorunn.

"Wha...Dad...we're just friends!" Hiccup yelled quickly, dashing around his father's larger body to try to retreat to his bedroom.

"Ay, that's how it starts. I remember me and your mother at your age. Ay, we started out not wanting a thing to do with one another. Then before you knew it..." Hiccup yelled at the top of his lungs to try to drown out his father when he realized where this was going, not wanting to hear about how intimate his parents got at his age.

"I'm only seventeen dad! God's help me, I'm just trying to be her friend since she's never had one besides the dragons!" Hiccup whined in despair over what he was stuck in with his father before quickly running up to his bedroom so he could hide from the embarrassing chief.

Fortunately, his father didn't pursue him further, so he just sat down at his desk, burying his face in his hands as he willed his mind to just forget the whole conversation with his father.

Down the street, Thorunn carefully opened the door to her bedroom, frowning when the dragon saw her and turned his back on her, narrowly missing her with his tail as he wrapped it around his side. "Zu, I've got some fresh cod for you." Thorunn advised as she dragged a barrel behind her to present to the dragon.

Zu did nothing but snort and turn his head away from her when she tried to move in front of him.

Thorunn frowned before pushing the barrel closer to her companion, picking up one of the fish and tossing it in front of his snout in hopes that he would at least try it. The dragon just snorted again, ignoring her attempts to try to get him to acknowledge her.

Thorunn backed away from him once the barrel was in front of him, wishing the stubborn dragon would just stop pouting and actually listen to her for once. "Zu, can't you at least listen to me for five minutes?" Thorunn asked as she walked over to her bed on the other side of the room to sit down, surprised when the dragon actually grumbled in response.

He hasn't acknowledged her at all in the days that Dusk had been with them, he even growled at her yesterday when she went to scratch him under the chin. But now he finally acknowledged her, or at least grumbled at her.

"You know I'm not choosing her over you Zu." Thorunn advised the male as she stood up, taking a few steps towards him as she tried to ignore his growling.

Zu huffed before turning his head away, unwilling to believe her since she was so willing to fawn over another dragon that had HURT her before. He was supposed to be her protector, and then she goes and fawns over the beast that left her with scars and in fear for eight years.

"She may have hurt me all that time ago Zu, and I know you want to keep me safe, but now she just wanted to apologize." Thorunn tried to explain to the stubborn male as she walked over to his fish barrel, taking one out and offering it to him in hopes he would take it.

Zu eyed the fish and the girl for a second, split between actually accepting the fish or continuing to ignore her for her actions. His stomach grumbled though as his eyes fell on the fish, and he reluctantly took it.

"That's my boy." Thorunn mused as she pushed the barrel closer to the Boneknapper, smiling when he immediately dug into the fish. "You're still my big buddy, Zu. Just...now I need to help Dusk too. She won't come between us though." Thorunn explained to the male as he ate, occasionally giving a glance in her direction as he ate.

Once done, the Boneknapper laid his eyes upon the girl, examining her to try to see if she was actually telling him the truth.

Thorunn was about to go back out to the other two dragons, when Zu suddenly lunged forward, beginning to lick the trainer as she burst into laughter at how he had finally forgiven her.

Down the street Toothless had been comfortably sleeping in his bed when the human across the room from him actually managed to wake him, looking out the window to see that it wasn't even light out yet. He growled, rolling over to face away from Hiccup before he heard what the teen was saying.

Toothless shot up, ears perked up now as he listened to the teen whine a name in his sleep, looking over to see him buried underneath the furs he had on his bed as he carefully crawled over towards the teens bed to see if he heard right.

On cue, the name left his lips once more, proceeded by a whine as well as Toothless jumped back, realizing that his trainer was having one of his noisy nights. He snorted before quickly leaping over his sleeping form and out the window, deciding he'd be better off having a sleep over with Dusk and Pythius.

Fortunately for the male Night Fury, Thorunn had left a window open before going to sleep, so he crept in through the open window to find both female dragons curled up around the smoldering embers in the center of the living room, carefully laying himself down between the two before returning to sleep.

**Thorunn POV**

I winced as Hiccup nudged my bandages with his hand, the bruises underneath protesting to his touch. "Sorry, need to get them off though." Hiccup reminded me as I kept my eyes on the ocean in front of us to try to ignore his touch.

"I know, but you don't need to touch the bruises." I reminded as he continued removing the old bandages.

"Well, I wouldn't be doing this if you'd have changed them yourself." Hiccup replied as I turned my head to look at him, seeing the smug smile he held and sticking my tongue out at him in response.

"I've been busy." I reminded him once more as he tossed the old bandages beside me, and I couldn't help but wince again when he began putting medicine on the still healing wounds.

"Well you won't be busy for long if you let these keep getting worse, because then you'll be laid up in Gothi's hut." Hiccup said as I blew raspberries at the idea.

"Such a control freak." I teased, watching as Pythius and Dusk flew in front of us, both racing each other even though Pythius knew that Dusk was the faster, being a Night Fury.

"I am not!" Hiccup protested immediately as I laughed at how he reacted to my words so quickly.

"Are too." I countered, turning to him to stick my tongue out at him once more as he glared at me, motioning for me to turn back around so he could finish.

"Just because I want to help you heal doesn't make me a control freak." Hiccup said once he finished replacing the bandages on my back, letting me pull my tunic and vest back on.

"No, but telling me when I have to do it by and what kinds of medicines I have to use, and where I have to do it might I add, that makes you a control freak." I replied, sticking my tongue out again as he glared at me again before I saw his look change, jumping up since I knew that look by now.

"Get back here!" Hiccup called after me as I took off running down the street, laughing at him as I dodged some of the villagers.

"Hey!"

"Watch it!"

"Get out of here you crazy teens!"

I continued laughing even as the villagers complained, since Hiccup's the heir to this tribe and he just ignored them and continued to chase me.

"I would think you faster by now, Dragon Trainer. I mean, you do have a Night Fury." I continued to tease, yelping when he almost caught me before dashing for the great hall.

"Oh, and tell me do you have a prosthetic on one of your legs?" Hiccup asked as we were running, before I slammed into the doors to the great hall, running in quickly.

I had barely gotten into the hall though when Hiccup slammed into me from behind, sending us both tumbling down onto the floor as I tried to ignore the pain that shot through my back from the fall. "Um...Ow!" I snapped at Hiccup as I felt a weight on top of me as well.

"Well, he hiccuped again."

"Someone's gonna be in trouble if Astrid sees."

"I thought it was already decided that he wasn't allowed to try!"

I looked up to see Hiccup sprawled on my back, letting out a groan before he opened his eyes and saw what he did, jumping off of me quickly as I rolled over onto my back, flipping over to land on my feet. "Well, some hiccup that was." I teased quietly before seeing the red on his face, obviously embarrassed about what had happened.

I glanced to the side to see who it was that had been commenting on the situation, seeing three of his friends. Two of them looked like twins, while the other looked upset until he realized that I had seen him.

"I am so..." Hiccup was cut off when the one boy shoved him aside, stepping up in front of me.

"Well hello there, I don't think we've properly met yet. I'm Snotlout." The boy introduced himself, taking my hand and pressing a chaste kiss to it before I pulled back from him.

"Yeah, I remember seeing you the day I got here." I muttered before looking over to Hiccup to see he looked annoyed by the boy being here.

"Well then, how's about ditching the hiccup here for a while and you and I go grab a drink. On me, of course." Snotlout said, sending me a look that I could only guess was him trying to appear warm and welcoming, but in the end just looked sultry.

"Yeah, you might want to take that offer, cause Hiccup's about to be in trouble. Here comes Astrid." The girl twin spoke up as I knitted my eyebrows together in confusion as to what they meant by he would be in trouble.

I looked over to Hiccup to see he was obviously annoyed by his friends, but then I felt Snotlout take my hand again to try to lead me away.

We didn't get far though, because when I started to struggle he just sat us down at one of the many tables in the great hall. "So...let's talk then." Snotlout said as I tried to keep the annoyance off my features over the situation before the door opened to the hall, in striding a blonde female viking with a Deadly Nadder in tow.

"There you are." I raised an eyebrow when instead of going to Hiccup, she pointed at me, anger etched over her features.

**Third Person POV**

The great hall fell silent once Astrid entered, only for her to point out the newer trainer in the hall, stomping over towards her and shoving Snotlout aside. "Hey! We were ta..." Astrid picked up the nearest thing, which fortunate for him was an apple, and shoved it roughly in his mouth.

"You, I'd like to have a word with you." Astrid snarled as her eyes fell on the confused heir sitting at the table in front of her.

"Do I even know you?" Thorunn's response certainly did nothing to help the angry blonde's attitude. She had seen the girl sitting down at the harbor with Hiccup. She saw how he was tending to her injuries, then racing through the village with her in a playful chase.

And worse of all, she saw the way Hiccup was on top of her moments before the Great Hall doors slammed shut behind them after their tumble.

"Thorunn Skull Splitter, I challenge you to a Dragon Race." Astrid snapped after moments of silence, not wanting to even speak to her and just get right to it.

Her temper sparked even more when all the brunette did in response was laugh at the idea.

"Astrid whats..." Astrid shoved him back when Hiccup came up and put a hand on her shoulder to try to talk to her.

On the other side of the hall Snotlout, Tuffnut, Ruffnut and Fishlegs were all just stuck watching, wondering what had sparked this temper that Astrid held towards Thorunn before Snotlout and Tuffnut began putting in wagers on who would win.

"My money's on Thorunn." Snotlout chimed confidently, knowing that he would win with his choice.

"With that big Boneknapper of hers? No way, Astrid's gonna win." Tuffnut argued as they both squared off once more, Ruffnut and Fishlegs rolling their eyes at how the two were all the time.

"A dragon race? You're kidding right?" Thorunn asked once she had managed to get her laughter over the idea under control.

"Winner gets a prize too, but we'll discuss that up in the skies." Astrid snarled at the girl as Stormfly flared out her spikes behind her, knowing that one way or another there was going to be a show down today.

"You do realize, I've been riding since I was nine. And you've got what? Three years on your belt? This isn't in your favor, girl. The answer is no." Thorunn advised, rising from her seat with a professional, yet calm look on her face as Hiccup looked between the two, mind racing with ideas on how to stop this.

"Just because you've got years means you're better. You probably wouldn't even make it around the stones with that old beast of yours." Astrid countered, and the heir who had been walking away stopped in her steps at the insult upon her dragon.

"Uh oh." Fishlegs muttered upon feeling the tension in the air thicken over what was said.

"This is gonna be interesting." Ruffnut mused as she rubbed her hands together, ignoring the two bickering men beside them.

"Alright, blonde, you've woken the sleeping dragon. You want a race, fine." Thorunn snarled, turning to Astrid as the blonde gave a small, triumphant smile at how she had gotten under her skin to get her to agree to the race.

"Astrid, Thorunn, you don't need to..." Hiccup stopped short when instead of listening Astrid stormed out of the great hall.

"Money's on Astrid!" Tuffnut's voice broke the silence first, before Ruffnut quickly bashed her brother over the head for his idiocy.

"Thorunn, wait." Hiccup called after Thorunn as she stormed out of the Great Hall next to retrieve one of her dragons, ignoring her friend even as she walked. "You don't need to do this." Hiccup called once more as he got out of the building.

"Yes I do." Thorunn called back in response to Hiccup this time, eyes not straying from her house though as she quickened her pace to get one of the dragons.

"No you don't. Just tell her no. It's not going to end well for either of you, no matter who wins." Hiccup said as he caught up to Thorunn finally.

"No one insults my dragons, Hiccup. I'll race her and win." Thorunn growled, and even as Hiccup stood in front of her to try to stop her, she stepped around him, going inside her house to get her dragons.

All the trainers met down on the docks an hour later, Astrid having already been waiting as Thorunn approached with Zu behind her, both looking annoyed by the challenge. "Are you ready?" Astrid asked, glancing up at the larger dragon behind the girl with a smirk since something so big could never move faster than Stormfly.

"You know, I was going to give you a chance to back down, but I think this will be more fun watching your dragon trail behind mine." Thorunn snarled before Zu lowered his head, blowing smoke out of his nose at the dragon that was challenging him as Thorunn leaped up onto his head.

"Fine then, first around the island and through the stone obstacles wins." Astrid declared as she jumped up onto Stormfly, rising up into the air quickly.

"Alright, not like that's a hard task. What do I get when I win?" Thorunn asked, trying to think of something to use against the blonde for when she wins.

The two rose up into the air on their dragons as the others stood down on the docks, Hiccup looking between his two friends in worry as Toothless whimpered beside him. "I know bud, I'm worried too." Hiccup murmured as he waited to see them shoot off on their race.

"When _I _win, you stay away from Hiccup." Astrid snapped at the girl standing atop her Boneknapper's head, who only tilted her head to the side in confusion.

"The Dragon Trainer? What do you have against me being around him?" Thorunn questioned as the dragon's beneath both of them waited impatiently for them to give the command to go.

"I don't trust you, that's what. You're doing nothing but distracting him, so when I win you stay away." Astrid snapped before her anger sparked as a small smirk formed on Thorunn's face at her words.

"Ah, you're the Astrid that I've heard about, aren't ya? Now I get it. You're jealous that I'll try to take him from you." Thorunn mused as the people on the docks below them began to wonder if there would even be a race, unable to hear what the two girls were saying.

"I'm not jealous! Stormfly, lets go!" Astrid took off with Stormfly, Thorunn quickly racing after her as she realized that this wasn't going to be a fair race.

"An unfair advantage, how cute. All this because of one boy." Thorunn called to Astrid as they flew, knowing that the girl's weakness was easily her temper.

"One _man _who you're distracting from using his time for more important things!" Astrid snapped before ordering Stormfly to fire on the Boneknapper.

Thorunn snarled at her before flying beneath the Deadly Nadder, dodging the spikes with ease.

"Is that the best you can do? I've seen a Terrible Terror shoot better than that!" Thorunn taunted before shooting ahead of her challenger, Zu letting smoke seep out of his mouth to try to distract the two.

"Alright Bud, that's it. We're stopping this." Hiccup declared to his dragon as he quickly jumped onto his back.

"What? No fair! We have money down on this race!" Snotlout protested but Hiccup was already off and racing after where the two girls disappeared to before he could even finish his sentence.

Zu snorted at Stormfly as she approached him from the side, unwilling to let the inferior dragon even gain an inch over his companion. He roared at her as she tried to zoom ahead of them, swinging his tail towards the Deadly Nadder as he shot ahead of her to try to clip her in the wing.

"Now who's being unfair!" Astrid yelled after Thorunn after narrowly dodging Zu's spiky tail.

"Not unfair if he does it on his own!" Thorunn called back as they rounded the mountains, shooting up towards the peak as both knew the descent back down would give them a boost in their speed.

Both reached the peak at the same time before dive bombing the forest below, Zu starting to gain distance over Stormfly due to his weight pulling him down faster.

"Stormfly!" Astrid called to her dragon over the roaring of the wind rushing past her ears, smiling when she didn't need to finish her sentence as the Deadly Nadder sent spikes flying down at the Boneknapper and it's rider.

Thorunn looked back in time to see the spikes, eyes widening in shock for a second since they were sent to hit her. "Zu!" Thorunn yelled before leaping from his back, a spike clipping her shoulder as she began to fall, her dragon not noticing until she was shooting past him.

Toothless roared as he saw the two woman racing down the side of the mountain, looking up at his rider as he tried to speed up. What he saw next though made him roar even louder when he saw Stormfly shoot at his companion's friend, the girl going flying from the Boneknapper at the attack.

Zu roared, trying to speed up to catch his rider. He was supposed to protect her, he couldn't let her fall. He didn't even care when he saw the other dragon and her own rider shoot past them, since all he was focused on was rescuing his human.

Hiccup saw Stormfly shoot past Zu, surprised since he would figure Zu would be faster in the downfall. That is, until he noticed something falling faster than even Zu. "Toothless catch her!" Hiccup yelled, preparing to jump himself if he needed to.

**Thorunn POV**

He's not going to catch me, in the name of Thor he's not going to catch me!

Calm down, calm it's just...water that's going to make me die!

Wait, my riding vest.

I quickly flipped over, grabbing the clasps that hung from my vest's sleeves and forming myself to reach down and try to clip them to my boots. "Come on, reach!" That's one.

Zu's gaze turned panicked now as I met his eyes, reaching down to attack the second clasp quickly and not even caring about the race now.

"Zu, dive bomb!" I called to him as hard as I could before turning back to face the ground, trying to contain my panic when I realized I was going to hit soon. This better work!

I quickly forced my arms open, the hidden flaps that I had attached to each end of the clasps opening wide as I slammed my eyes shut, hoping to Thor that I didn't hit the ground.

Instead, I was met with a sudden weightlessness, opening my eyes to see myself rising slowly. It worked! Yes!

I looked at the two leather wings now opened wide on either side of my body before leaning down, closing my arms more as Zu caught up with me finally, a confused look on his face as I flew, yes flew, beside my companion.

"I'm flying Zu! The idea worked!" I called to him before pulling up, narrowly missing the water as we shot across the surface, dodging a fishing boat before I heard Zu let out a frightened roar, looking up in time to see the Deadly Nadder fire again, spikes shooting right for me though.

"Zu get her!" I snapped at him, trying to dodge but suddenly I felt one wing go limp and a stinging in my leg, looking down to see the spike clipped the leather attached to the clasp and stuck into my calf.

Well, at least it worked for a little while.

I prepared to hit the water, but instead my ears heard a roar, and I felt slick scales beneath me, opening my eyes that I had shut to see Dusk. "Dusk? You were following me?" I asked, confused for a second, but instead of nodding her head she shot a plasma blast ahead of us at the Deadly Nadder, narrowly missing her.

"Let's win this race Dusk!" I yelled, holding on tight as she shot ahead, approaching Astrid rapidly.

**Third Person POV**

Astrid let a scream loose when a plasma blast shot past her and Stormfly, not having ever thought Hiccup would shoot at her. She was about to land, when instead the Night Fury shot right past her, surprising her since this wasn't Toothless, and that definitely wasn't Hiccup.

"Try to kill me once, shame on you. Try to kill me twice, I'm going to force you to eat my Night Fury's dust!" Thorunn yelled back to Astrid as they began to dodge the stone's that jutted out of the water beneath them.

Astrid growled angrily before ordering Stormfly to speed up.

Each time Stormfly would try to fire spikes at the dragon ahead of her, she would shoot out of the way just in the nick of time. It was finally getting down to the last stone obstacle, a low hanging rock arch. Stormfly shot ahead, ready to dive under it to preserve her rider's safety, when instead the Night Fury shot at the obstacle, causing it to crumble right as they were about to pass under it, shooting over the structure instead as the dragon's rider laughed at the predicament.

"Now, don't tell me you're giving up back there? We still have to get back to the docks!" Thorunn called back to Astrid as they turned towards the docks back near shore.

"This isn't over yet!" Astrid yelled back angrily as the final leg of the race began, Stormfly struggling to catch up to the Night Fury in front of them.

Back on the docks the other riders were waiting in anticipation, unsure who would win since the riders vanished earlier. Finally, the dragon's appeared far off. "I see them!" Fishlegs announced, before a confused look dawned his features.

"What is it? Is Astrid winning, or is Thorunn?" Snotlout demanded as he tried to snatch the scope out of the husky teen's hands.

"Thorunn...she switched dragons." Fishlegs revealed, handing over the scope to Snotlout, and the second he saw what she was riding his jaw dropped.

"A Night Fury?!" Snotlout asked, shoving Tuffnut when he began to protest about her using Hiccup's dragon instead of her own.

Hiccup finally was beginning to catch up with the girls now, having been slowed down when he saw Thorunn somehow manage to glide over the water, and then even more so when Zu fell back and was replaced by Dusk. He could finally see them though, and they were shooting towards the finish line.

His worry only grew in knowing that whoever won and lost, there would still be nothing but a fight.

Neck and neck, Stormfly had finally caught up with Dusk. She glared over at the other dragon, only to roar when she saw the purple orb forming in her mouth, falling back in time to avoid the plasma blast as it shot right through where her head would have been, instead striking the mast of a fishing boat.

The crowd that had now formed on the dock's erupted when Dusk landed, Stormfly landing moments later. "Thorunn wins!" Snotlout announced happily, turning to Tuffnut for his money as the blonde male began to protest about it not being a fair race.

Dusk was left panting as she hit the docks, looking to her side as Stormfly fell forward onto the dock, beyond exhausted herself. Dusk didn't feel bad for her though, since the dragon had shot upon her friend willingly.

Astrid jumped off of Stormfly, beyond angry now as she whirled on the rider who jumped off of Dusk's back, stumbling for a second as she reached down, pulling the spike out of her flesh and throwing it down in front of Astrid's feet, beyond angry herself over the unfair race.

Hiccup landed seconds later with Toothless, both looking between the two before he noticed the bloody spike on the ground between the two woman, looking towards Astrid now as he realized that the race had turned into a fight as well.

"I won, fair and square too I would say since you fired upon me, caused me to almost die twice, and I still hit the finish line first." Thorunn announced, straightening up since even with her disadvantages, she came out victorious.

"Fair? You switched dragons mid-race? How is that fair?" Astrid argued, stepping back though when the female Night Fury began to growl at her for her aggressive tone towards Thorunn.

"I call it fair, since I took a spike to the shoulder and calf from _your_ dragon. This race is over, now step aside." Thorunn demanded, and while normally Astrid would still fight back, the enraged Night Fury standing beside Thorunn made her reluctantly move aside.

Thorunn passed, limping slightly from the injuries she sustained, before Astrid instead rounded on her again. "Don't think this mean's you won him." Astrid snapped, interrupting the congratulations that had begun to spill forth from the villagers towards Thorunn.

Now everyone instead began to mutter to themselves as they wondered who Astrid was talking about. Thorunn glanced back at her before scoffing at the statement.

"I never made that a part of my winning, blonde. My prize, is knowing I won even after you tried to kill me." Thorunn growled before turning and limping off, Dusk following close behind as Zu landed on the shore, eying his companion worriedly before seeing she was relatively okay, and surprisingly thanks to the Night Fury.

The villagers who had been watching looked between the two girls in confusion before the crowd fell into hushed muttering and questions about what had just happened.

* * *

**I promised excitement, and I delivered now didn't I? I bet I had some of you wondering what she was working on a few chapters back, well this was it. The prototype of the wingsuit. Let me say, those things in real life are actually _very_ fun to use. Anyways, hope you all enjoyed the chapter as much as I did writing it. Now, I'm going to give an idea. I've got chapters already lined up in my doc manager. I've written way ahead of this point actually. So, if yall want me to post them sooner, send me some reviews. I only have one at 8 chapters, after all.**

**Anyways, thanks again for reading!**


	9. In Need Of Assistance

**Greetings once again readers! Not much to say again, so get right to reading. Enjoy!**

* * *

"Astrid, what's going on?" Hiccup asked seriously, not exactly sure if he wanted to know but knowing he had to now since his friend almost killed Thorunn today.

Astrid growled angrily before abruptly slapping the boy who this was all about across the face before storming off, leaving all who had seem in shock as to what that was about and Hiccup even more confused since he hadn't even done anything to deserve the slap.

Thorunn dropped to her knees carefully, rolling up her pant legs to expose the wound that she had received, wincing when she saw how bad it actually was.

Dusk whimpered at the sight, tugging on the rider's vest since she could see blood seeping from it as well, helping her remove it even.

"Thank you Dusk." Thorunn muttered tiredly as she proceeded to remove her tunic, reaching forward to cup some water and use it to clean her wounds.

Dusk whimpered each time Thorunn let out a cry of pain at her attempts to clean the wounds, glancing back at Zu who was just watching with an equally saddened expression over how he had let this happen. If he had been faster, she wouldn't have taken a spike to the leg.

Zu turned around, deciding that he would darn well protect her now by making sure no one got into this cove until she was finished trying to tend to her wounds.

Thorunn fell back as the pain of kneeling finally got to be too much, her body protesting every movement even though she knew she had to cleanse her wounds or risk infection.

Dusk quickly moved forward, laying down to let Thorunn rest against her side while she tried to heal herself. Her own wound was already closed, but she knew how unbearable the pain could get.

It still hurt her to even fly at times, but she forced herself to when she saw that the girl was in danger out there.

"Thank you, both of you." Thorunn murmured to the dragon's as she saw Zu patrolling the area, grabbing the bandages she had grabbed before coming out here to wrap around her calf.

Zu hadn't seen his friend in this much pain in years. He actually was very worried for her, especially with how she was becoming more sluggish with each passing second. Exchanging a look with the Night Fury laying beside his friend, he quickly took off into the air in hopes to find help.

Thorunn winced as she finished wrapping the bandage tightly around her calf, knowing that was the easy part though because now she had to wrap her shoulder. She let out another cry of pain upon pressing the bandage to the wound, wishing that it had been something else that had injured her instead of a damned Deadly Nadder.

**Thorunn POV**

Why in Thor's name me? I'd done nothing to the girl, why attack me?

I looked to Dusk upon hearing her whimper from my yells of pain, forcing a smile through the pain to try to assure her I was fine, but she just continued to look saddened by my state.

"I...I'm fine...Dusk." I muttered, but another yell escaped my lips as I continued wrapping my shoulder with the bandage, the pressure just making it all the more painful as I felt as though the pain was shooting through my whole body.

Dusk whimpered more this time, leaning forward and nuzzling her snout against my side as I bit my lip to try to keep from being so loud, since now that it's getting darker out who knows what else just might come running at the sound of a wounded viking.

Hell, the Deadly Nadder might even come running, I mean it almost killed me after all.

I looked behind us to call to Zu, but surprisingly he wasn't there anymore. I wanted to ask Dusk, but from the look on her face she's not going to leave my side for a second while I'm like this.

I continued wrapping, feeling my eyes fell up with tears from the pain as I tried not to scream and yell at the feeling. I laid back against Dusk when done, burying my face against her scales.

Dusk whimpered again, wrapping her wing around me like the day I'd rescued her out here as I smiled weakly at her to try to let her know I was fine.

"I'm fine...Dusk. Just...going to take a little rest." I murmured, shutting my eyes as she continued whimpering. The last thing I heard was feet running towards me.

**Hiccup POV**

How could Astrid do this? She's never attacked anyone without a good reason.

And now, Thorunn's laying here severely injured because of her.

I was surprised when Zu had tracked me down, smashing into the blacksmith roaring and panicking, I had to go with him to see what was wrong.

But I wasn't expecting him to lead me to the cove to find Thorunn unconscious beside Dusk.

I rushed her back on Zu's back, bringing her to my house and nearly giving Dad a heart attack from bringing an injured girl into the house.

"What happened?" Dad asked me after he called for Gothi to come help.

"Stormfly attacked her. They...they had a race earlier and she hit her with her spikes. She must have not known that they're coated with poison, cause I found her out in the woods." I explained as I tried to calm down a bit, glancing between the girl unconscious in my living room to Dusk who was standing over her with a worried expression of her own.

"Why would Astrid attack the lass? They barely know one another." Dad reminded me as I wracked my brain for any reason to explain why she did what she did.

"I...I don't know." I muttered, utterly defeated before the door banged open, Gothi walking in and rushing over to Thorunn.

She pushed Dad and I back as she began to try to help Thorunn, but all I could do was stumble back, still trying to figure out why this happened.

Once Gothi was working to heal Thorunn, I slipped out to try to find Astrid.

**Thorunn POV**

The pain, it's slowly going away. I can feel hands on my, someone's near me. Someone might try to harm me again.

I shot up, trying to shove whatever or whoever was near me away, opening my eyes to find I wasn't in the woods anymore.

In front of me stood an elderly woman and Stoick, both holding worried looks on their faces as they watched me. "How ya feeling lass?" Stoick asked me as I looked at him in confusion.

"Feel? What do you mean? What happened?" I asked as I looked down at my leg to find someone had replaced my bandages with a different kind.

"Ya were poisoned by that Deadly Nadder, she had poison coating her spikes. You didn't know?" Stoick asked me as I began to wrack my brain, thinking on what happened after the race.

"I...guess I was in so much pain I forgot." I murmured as the elderly woman tapped my shoulder, causing me to look to see the bandages were coated with something as well.

"Gothi here put some medicine on your wounds, even left some in the bandages so you should be right as rain in a week." Stoick explained as I tried to stand up, Dusk shooting forward to catch me when I stumbled, surprising me since I didn't even see her until then.

"T...thank you. But...I think I just want to go to sleep." I murmured, looking forward to going home to my own comfy bed with my dragons.

"I don't know...are you sure you'd be fine alone?" Stoick asked me, and in response I nodded towards Dusk beside me.

"I'm never alone, I've got Dusk, Zu and Pythius with me. If I need something, I'll send them." I assured before slowly making my way out, not wanting to be of a burden to the chief of this village any longer.

Dusk whimpered as we walked down the street, helping me stay upright as I tried to ignore the pain that shot through my leg each time I took a step with my injured leg.

"It's fine, girl. Let's just go to bed." I offered as we continued on towards home.

We got about halfway there when I began to hear yelling, looking down one street to see two figures standing in the middle of the street.

"You almost killed her!" That voice...Hiccup?

"I didn't do anything! Stormfly reacted to knowing that she shouldn't be here!" That's Astrid. Are they talking about me.

"She's allowed here as long as she wants! That doesn't give you or your dragon the right to almost kill someone who you don't even know!" Hiccup continued to yell. I've never seen him angry before. I didn't even think it was possible. He's such a gentle guy, as apposed to the rest of the men on this island.

"I know enough Hiccup! We had this same discussion about Heather. She's just distracting you, we don't need her here!" Astrid yelled right back as I felt Dusk tug on my sleeve, but I didn't budge, I just stood there and continued to listen as their fighting went on a little longer.

"She's not hurting anyone! I trust her, I'm her friend! You should try for once actually trusting someone first before you start trying to kill them!" Hiccup snapped as he took a step towards Astrid, looking like if Toothless was here he'd sick the dragon on her.

"I do trust someone Hiccup, you. But then you...you do this!" Astrid snapped, and at this point I didn't even know what they were talking about, either from the throbbing pain in my leg or she just wasn't making any sense in general.

"Do what? I haven't done anything! I tried to stop you both, and then you just slapped me for no reason on the dock!" Hiccup continued on, and I didn't need to be closer to know that the blondes temper was about to explode.

"Didn't do anything? You're...you're just fawning all over some random girl! You're not supposed to do that!" Astrid screamed, pushing forward to pound her fists against Hiccup's chest now as I wondered if I should just leave.

"Fawning over her? I'm her friend! Dammit Astrid, you always do this with every girl I meet!' Hiccup snapped right back at Astrid as he grabbed her hands to stop her from hitting her.

Dusk gave another tug at me sleeve as I watched Astrid slowly calm down a bit. "Maybe...that's because you're supposed to be...with me." Astrid said loud enough for me to still hear her, and at this point I was completely lost until I watched her lean forward, lips meeting Hiccup's as his hands released her own that he had been restraining.

At this sight, I actually felt the pain in my leg subside a bit, surprising me for a second since the next moment I felt a sick feeling in my stomach, and as though I'd taken a blow to the chest since my airflow became restricted. Dusk tugged my sleeve again, and though I stumbled and knocked over a basket, I followed her this time.

I heard voices again, but my head felt full of cotton by now, so I let Dusk lead me into the house, the door slamming with a swish of her tail before she led me to bed.

**Hiccup POV**

I wasn't expecting this. I wasn't expecting Astrid to kiss me. Thor knows, she hasn't in over six months. But what I also wasn't expecting, was that as it lasted longer, the spark that I'd felt every time we kissed gradually began to disappear.

I pushed her back when I heard something crash nearby, glancing down the street in time to see who I can only guess to be Dusk leading someone off. Wait...

I pushed Astrid off of me fully, giving a second's glance at her before taking off after Dusk. If she has who I think she has, then there's no way I'm just going to sit her and let Astrid kiss me instead of stopping the dragon.

I rounded the corner in time to see Dusk pulling a very sick looking Thorunn inside her house, racing after them only for Dusk to slam the door as I got near.

What's wrong with her? I'm trying to help her rider, and she slams the door in my face. I went to open it, but somehow Dusk managed to lock it as well. "Dusk! Open the door!" I called after the female, banging on the door a few times as well.

I heard a roar, but that was it. She didn't come to open the door, she just let me stand there for a little bit before I felt someone's hands go around my neck. "Hiccup..." I pushed her hands off this time.

"Not now, Astrid." I growled before turning to go question my father as to why he let Thorunn leave when she had just been poisoned by a Deadly Nadder hours ago.

**Third Person POV**

Her breathing was shallow as she slept, ragged every once in a while as three sets of eyes watched her sleeping form. The three dragon's hadn't left her side all night, not wanting to risk let anything happen further to their friend.

But now the sun was slowly rising in the sky. She should have been up by now. Pythius gave a soft whine as she turned her eyes from the sleeping teen to Pythius, who was standing near the doorway while watching the human sleep.

His eyes caught the female Boneknapper's, already knowing what she wanted. If they couldn't wake the injured human, then they'd have to send for someone. Eyes going from Pythius to Thorunn, the older dragon already knew he'd probably go for the human boy she spent her time with.

Dusk growled though when she realized that they wanted to retrieve that teen, confusing both since neither of them knew of the sight that they had seen last night. She may be a dragon, but even a dragon knows when someone's sickened by something. And that sight put the poor girl off a little more than she had thought it would.

If only Thorunn were a dragon. Things were so much simpler for them. If someone overstepped their boundaries, or messed with their friends or mates, then a battle would ensure. While technically one already did, Thorunn won. So that other girl, she was way out of line with what she had done last night. Dusk dropped her head when she heard her friend whimper out in pain, glancing over towards the oldest dragon in the room.

Zu's eyes seemed to mirror her own sadness, both not wanting to see the viking in pain. But Dusk, she didn't seem to like the idea of going for the human boy. Zu gave her an apologetic look before turning to go for at least something to help their rider.

Dusk and Pythius exchanged worried looks before focusing their eyes back on the sleeping girl in the bed beside Dusk, since being the smaller Dragon, she was the only one able to actually curl up with her at night.

Zu stomped through the streets quickly, ignoring the grown humans that he would almost trample as he searched for remedies for his human's illness. He snatched up some bandages from one stall, sending a growl at the human who began to yell at him for doing so, before turning to go find something more to treat her wounds.

He turned onto the next street to be met with a curious Night Fury, who only tilted his head to the side in confusion upon seeing the worried look on the older male's face. Toothless chittered to him, wanting an explanation, but Zu just stomped past him to continue searching for remedies.

Toothless began to follow him instead, eyes keeping track of what Zu was taking from the villagers. Something finally seemed to click though when he realized that most of what Zu was taking were medicinal, just then remembering that yesterday the older dragon's companion had been injured.

Zu was about to go back when Toothless jumped in front of him, halting him much to the Boneknapper's annoyance about being stopped from going home. Toothless began to grumble his question quickly, wanting to know right then if Thorunn was in trouble. When all Zu gave in response was a sad look, Toothless took off running back towards his own home where he knew his human friend should be waking up any second.

Zu took off back towards his own home, even leaving the door open as he ran in with the supplies that they needed to help the human. His sadness grew upon seeing her still laying in bed asleep, but he quickly began roaring orders at the other two dragons to help him with her.

Dusk quickly rose, pulling back the covers to allow Zu access to her injured shoulder and calf, both bandages a faint red already as she whimpered at the sight. Careful as he could be, the oldest dragon began to remove the bandaging from her calf.

All three whimpered when the human, even while unconscious, gave a cry of pain as his teeth tore off the bandage.

It was after that cry of pain that they heard the front door slam, Pythius going to see a frightened looking teen standing in the doorway, but not the teen they were looking for.

Snotlout backed up a bit upon seeing the Boneknapper appear out of the doorway to Thorunn's room, only having come to try to see if the girl would spend the day with him. He wasn't expecting to hear someone scream in pain though when he found the front door wide open.

Pythius eyed the boy carefully, before hearing another cry of pain from her human, whimpering before darting forward, ignoring the boy's scared yelp as she got behind him and began nudging him towards the bedroom, deciding that he's human as well so he could help hopefully.

"Wha...what're you doing?" The boy questioned Pythius before she gave him one last shove into the bedroom, watching his face go blank upon seeing the injured trainer across the room and how her own dragons were trying to help her.

When he didn't move, Pythius pushed the boy further into the room, stopping once he was closer to her to let out a whimper, trying to convey that they needed his help.

"I...I don't know what to do!" Snotlout whined back, throwing his hands up in the air before Pythius nodded towards the medical supplies on the floor in front of Zu.

Zu's eyes followed the viking as he moved slowly towards the supplies, chortling at how the boy was obviously scared of him. Good that, too. The only human that should never fear him is laying feet away unconscious.

Snotlout glanced between the three dragons, sighing in defeat when he realized they wouldn't let him leave with out at least trying to help their trainer. Hovering his hand over the supplies, fortunately Zu snorted each time he was about to pick up the wrong thing until he finally settled on the anti-venom medicine for her wounds.

This definitely wasn't something he was planning on doing today. Yeah, he planned on trying to spend some one on one time with the foreign trainer, maybe push his luck and get a little romance flaring. But not trying to help her with an injury.

Though, now that he looked a bit closer, he could definitely enjoy the sight he was getting while I applied the medicine to her scantily clad body.

Zu watched carefully as the male began to carefully apply the medicine to Thorunn's calf, watching her wince at first in pain before relaxing as the medicine began to work. Looking back at the now queasy looking teen, he snorted a demand to Pythius backing out of the room to get some fresh water.

Snotlout sighed when the big mean Boneknapper left, knowing the other two weren't going to leave but at least the grumpy one was gone. He looked back towards Thorunn when he heard a soft whine escape her lips, eyes falling on her own as he began applying the medicine to her shoulder now, actually beginning to like helping her more each time she let out a sigh of relief or a whine.

Toothless bounded down the street, looking back every few feet to make sure Hiccup was keeping up with him. The human wasn't too happy when he jumped into the window and landed on him as he was waking up, but fortunately he knew by how Toothless was freaking out and running down the street that something was wrong.

His worry only grew though when he realized where Toothless was leading him too, beginning to run when Toothless shot through the front door of Thorunn's house.

Thorunn let out a soft while again, Snotlout dawning a smirk at the sounds before her eyes shot open, trying to sit up before falling back in pain as she moved her injured shoulder.

She had expected one of her dragons to catch her, but instead she felt hands on her back, lowering her slowly back onto the bed as she opened her eyes to see the boy she barely met. Snotlout, was it? "Wha...what's going on?" Thorunn asked after she was laid back down in her bed, surprised that a complete stranger was in her house helping her.

"Your dragon pulled me in here to help you." Snotlout said as he nodded towards Pythius, who was sitting a few feet behind him with a worried look.

Dusk gave a whimper to get the girl's attention, nudging her leg as Thorunn looked down to see a creamy white substance over her wound. "Did you..." Thorunn nodded towards the medicine on her calf, turning back to Snotlout as she realized it was on her shoulder as well.

"I just used what your dragons pushed towards me. It helped, right?" Snotlout asked before jumping forward to stop Thorunn when she tried to sit up, since she only had the medicine on her wounds and not bandages.

"This...it's anti-venom for Deadly Nadder poison." Thorunn explained as she felt the burning and pulsing pain that she had felt in her wounds since last night finally beginning to dissipate slowly, wondering what would make this man want to help her when they didn't know one another.

"You were poisoned? Well, good thing your dragons gave me that to use then." Snotlout said as he leaned back against the bed in relief over not making her worse then she had been when he found her.

Thorunn studied the teen's body language carefully, wondering if this was his attempt at wooing her again like yesterday. When all she saw though instead was slight worry in his eyes and relief over knowing he helped her though, she reached over, fingertips grazing his medicine covered hands.

Snotlout looked down at her fingers on his much larger hand, surprised since he wasn't expecting her to willingly thank him or anything. Chancing a glance in the girl's direction and trying to ignore how she was still only in her wraps, his eyes widened in pleasant surprise when she sat up, leaning closer to him.

"Thank you...for helping me. If you hadn't...the poison probably would have done a lot more damage." Thorunn murmured as she tried her hardest to think of a way to thank him properly for his assistance, wishing that she knew better how to interact with other people. Living most of her life with dragons really had it's downsides at times.

"Well, good thing I got here when I did then. Maybe soon you'll be well enough to come out for a fly with me." Snotlout mused, eyes catching with Thorunn's as he noticed her green eyes that he expected to be full of annoyance at his words soften instead.

"I wouldn't mind that at all." Thorunn murmured as her eyes dropped from Snotlout's, deciding on something to try to use as a thank you until she was well enough to go out and fly with him.

Hiccup finally stumbled into Thorunn's house, breathing heavily from the run as he heard something in the bedroom, rushing in to try to help her only to stop in his tracks at what he saw.

Snotlout grinned ear to ear when Thorunn leaned in, pressing a kiss to his cheek, but him being the teen he was, he turned his head a bit, burying his face against her neck as he wrapped one arm around the girl, smiling more when he felt her smaller arms encircle his abdomen.

Normally, Thorunn could care less about coming into contact with anyone that wasn't a dragon. But, this boy did help her. So when he pulled her into a hug she decided to return it, senses taking in how he smelled like fire and mead before her other senses told her they weren't alone, glancing up to see Toothless and Hiccup standing in the doorway.

He shouldn't feel this bad about seeing this. He shouldn't feel a burning rage starting to broil in his chest towards his cousin. He shouldn't feel upset by how Thorunn was so willing to take comfort with someone else. He shouldn't feel anything but embarrassed by walking in to see them hugging.

But...it took him so long to get her to trust him. It took him too long to get her to not flinch when he laid so much as a finger upon her skin. To shed her serious Dragon Trainer persona and talk to him like a real viking girl. He worked hard to get where he was with her.

Then Snotlout just waltzes in and gets a kiss on the cheek and a hug from the girl he was coming to help save. But no, Snotlout saved the day this time.

"Hiccup." His voice even sounded unfamiliar as she spoke it. Like his head was stuffed up like when he has a cold.

Snotlout heard his cousin's voice leave the lass's lips, not surprised as he turned his head slightly to see him standing in the doorway. But instead of speaking up himself, he pulled Thorunn closer to him, wanting to memorize the girl but knowing that being that she was injured, he couldn't exactly trace every part of her body with his eyes without being attacked by one of her dragons.

"I...I came to see if...you were okay." Hiccup muttered, feeling his anger flare up upon seeing his cousin pull the girl tighter to him.

"She's fine, I patched her up. She'll be fine in no time, then we're gonna go for a fly on Hookfang." Snotlout finally spoke up, reluctantly pulling away from Thorunn to shoot his cousin a victorious look over how he now had the advantage with the lass beside him.

Hiccup balled his fists as they hung at his sides, wanting to just walk over and punch him right in the face for his tone, but Toothless tugged at his sleeve to try to keep him from doing something he would regret. "That's...great." Hiccup said through gritted teeth as his gaze went from the annoying teen to the injured trainer sitting beside him.

Thorunn looked between the two in confusion, the tension so obvious between them that even Dusk, Pythius and Toothless could feel it. She didn't know what was causing it, but all she wanted to do was get her leg and shoulder wrapped once more.

When the two men had gone back into a silent stare down, Dusk jumped up, grabbing the bandages and shoving them onto Snotlout's lap since he was closest, surprising Hiccup though since he had been helping her with her bandages for much longer, and Snotlout probably didn't even know how to wrap them properly.

With one last triumphant glare at Hiccup, Snotlout turned back to Thorunn with the bandages, smiling when she just leaned back against the headboard of her bed to let him wrap her calf first, wanting to save the more painful shoulder for later.

Hiccup watched silently as Snotlout wrapped the bandages around her calf, seeing the occasional smiles that Thorunn would send him for his help and feeling sicker at the sight.

No, no he shouldn't be feeling this way.

When he moved onto her shoulder, Thorunn let out a hiss of pain upon having the bandages pressed against her shoulder. "Sorry, it's gonna hurt a bit." Snotlout advised as he carefully began to wrap them, Thorunn whimpering in pain every so often.

Snotlout only got half way through before he was shoved back, Thorunn opening her eyes to see Hiccup replace him on the bed as he took the bandages from the less experienced brute. "You're doing it wrong." Hiccup hissed at his cousin, surprised he even managed to wrap her calf.

"Wha...I was doing fine!" Snotlout snapped back at his cousin before Dusk growled at both of them, unwilling to allow them to fight in front of her friend who was obviously much more in need of their help.

"Guys...I can just do it." Thorunn murmured upon seeing the display of aggression that they showed to one another over who could help her better, sitting up to try to finish the task herself. She bit her lip when her body protested trying to do the job herself.

Hiccup frowned upon realizing that she didn't want them fighting in front of her, slowly taking her hand off the bandages as her eyes rose to meet his own. "You're just hurting yourself more." Hiccup advised the brunette as he slowly began to wrap the bandage himself, unable to keep the smile off his face when she didn't whimper or whine in pain from his help.

Score for Team Hiccup.

Once done, Thorunn slowly laid back down, Dusk snuggling up closer to her as Toothless walked up to the side of the bed, saddened by how Dusk was so upset at the state Thorunn was in. He crawled up as well, the bed protesting the weight of two dragons and three humans on the bed, before he curled up behind Dusk, wanting to somehow help the two girls.

"You should get some more rest, Thorunn. Gothi should be checking in on you later to give you more medicine." Hiccup advised before letting out a grunt as he was pushed back, Snotlout taking his seat as he traced a hand over the girl's bandaged shoulder, smirking at Hiccup when she didn't flinch in pain from his touch.

"When you get up next time, just give me a call huh? I'll be more of a help than Hiccup here." Snotlout said, jabbing a thumb in his cousins direction even as he held a sweet smile for the injured lass on the bed beside him.

At this point, Hiccup was seconds away from throwing his hardest punch into Snotlout's big fat nose, when Zu finally stomped back into the room, growling when he saw the extra human's in the room when Thorunn should be resting.

"Boys." Thorunn spoke up. "I'll talk to you later, but now I just want to rest." Thorunn advised before Zu forced them out of the house.

Hiccup glared furiously at his cousin, only for the brute to smirk victoriously at him before striding away.

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**A twist! Bet you guys thought I forgot that Stormfly's spikes are laced with poison. Bet you also weren't expecting Snotlout to show up. Anyways, thanks for reading. Hope you enjoyed it!**


	10. Falling Apart

**Greetings once more! Don't have much to say again, because I'm starting to fall behind on my writing quota of at least a chapter and a half per day. Might help if yall started reviewing, but I'll try to keep up. Anyways, enjoy the chapter.**

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Dusk and Toothless set silently by the fire, watching the vikings bicker back and forth. Now normally, Dusk would be with Thorunn right now.

But when there's extra fish in the Great Hall, they have to go get some.

Unfortunately though, the teens were there when they got there and bickering amongst themselves. "You got nowhere with her. She's so reclusive, she'd prefer a dragon over you." Tuffnut countered Snotlout's claims of getting further than a hug in the week he's been helping the downed heir.

"Oh you wanna bet on that? Because you can ask her. If she'd been wearing lipstick, my face would be covered in it by now." Snotlout advised as he got up into Tuffnut's face again, both ignoring Fishlegs' attempt to get them to stop.

"You're supposed to be helping her _heal_ Snotlout." Hiccup growled at his cousin from where he was sitting over at a table with Fishlegs.

"Ignore him, he's just mad because he lost." Snotlout said, before dodging when Hiccup threw the book of dragon's he and Fishlegs had been updating.

"Alright then, if you're so sure you have her under your spell, then what's your next move?" Tuffnut questioned, challenging glint in his eyes since he knew the brute didn't have a romantic bone in his body. All he ever did with the foreign girls that came was have some fun then send them on their merry way.

Snotlout laughed at the question before turning back to Tuffnut. "Let's just say, Hookfang's playing the role of wingman for me tonight. Gonna go for a nice, romantic flight and let things go where they want." Snotlout explained, turning to Hiccup when he mentioned his date plans for the night to see his cousin red in the face with anger and jealousy.

"She's not even into you. If you knew her better, you'd know she's not the kind of girl to want to date." Hiccup snapped at his cousin as he stood up, ignoring Fishlegs' attempt to try to calm him down.

"Maybe not date _you_, Mr. I can't keep a girlfriend happy, but me... Let's just say she's really excited for tonight. That's why she's out with Pythius right now to make sure she's up for the flight." Snotlout said, confidence glowing in his eyes over how he finally got the upper hand over Hiccup after three years of his cousin being the shining star of the group.

Snotlout and Tuffnut erupted into laughter once Hiccup stormed out of the Great Hall, obviously unamused by how Snotlout was victorious.

Toothless cast a worried look towards Dusk who was snuggled against his side, surprised when she herself didn't look to worried. He rose up, stretching his long black body, before motioning towards the door so they could go for a walk.

Dusk smiled at Toothless for the idea before jumping up, bounding out of the room to try to see if he would be up for a race through the streets.

No one even noticed as the two dragons bounded out of the Great Hall.

Hiccup stormed down the streets towards Thorunn's house, set on trying to convince her that it was in her best interest not to go on this night flight with Snotlout. He got to her front doorstep when he heard a Boneknapper roar, glancing up into the sky in time to see Pythius dropping down into the forest and knowing immediately that she was going to the cove more than likely.

Pythius watched carefully as Thorunn dismounted her, walking over to the water with an obvious limp in her step. She was still surprised that the trainer had picked her to ride with today, and not Zu. Though, one look at Zu and you could see why. The male hadn't slept in days now.

"That was a real smooth flight, Pythius. You're getting much better." Thorunn advised as she turned to the Boneknapper, smiling when the dragon rolled her eyes at the comment. "What's wrong, don't like my compliment _girl_." Thorunn asked, smirking at the last word since she knew Pythius was much happier now that she realized she was in fact a female.

And all it took was Toothless teasing her by trailing his tail across her under belly.

Though, in Thorunn's defense, it is a bit hard to tell the gender of an adolescent Boneknapper. They're not full size yet, so it's a fair bit harder to tell if she was smaller than a male Boneknapper.

Pythius snorted at Thorunn for her words once more before walking over to the water to try to catch some fish.

Thorunn chuckled at the dragon before kneeling down beside the water to rub some water across her face, leaning back with Pythius when she managed to catch a fish to eat. "Well, hopefully I'll be ready for tonight now." Thorunn murmured as Pythius rolled her eyes once more at the teen.

The Boneknapper sure was glad sometimes that she was a dragon instead of human like her friend. If Thorunn were a dragon, it would be so much simpler than going for a ride on a Monstrous Nightmare with the teen that wanted to court her. All she would have to do is prove her worth with a little match against her potential mate, to show she could keep her ground against him, then provide a suitable nest, and she'd be home free.

But...then again she was still just a human. And humans had all these weird rituals where they had to befriend one another first. Then prove trust. Then after who knows how long finally prove worth to one another that they should be mates. They didn't even try to mate even after that point, from what Pythius had seen in some of the villages Thorunn had brought her and Zu to.

Acknowledging the girl's obvious nervousness about her flight tonight finally, Pythius grumbled her assurance that the teen would be fine.

Thorunn chuckled once more at Pythius for her response, knowing she must be annoying her by now since this had to be the tenth time since they left that she'd mentioned the flight. But who could blame her.

Thorunn had been cut off from everything normal, like dating, by the age of nine when she left the Murderous Tribe. She never settled down, never met a boy. Never even kissed one on the cheek until Snotlout showed up in her house to help her when she was down.

Even though she was nervous for being alone, up in the sky, with a guy who obviously was wanting to be with her, part of her had a feeling it was wrong. Probably the part that was used to being alone with no cares in the world except making sure every dragon was safe.

Thorunn sighed as she leaned forward, resting her chin on her palm as she wondered if it would be simpler to just take off once more, go back to living life on the fly with Zu and Pythius. But...then she wouldn't have made up with Dusk and had her settle down with her and the Boneknappers. But then she also wouldn't be injured by a girl who hated her for absolutely no reason.

She wouldn't have been poisoned, she wouldn't have her back, shoulder and calf all bandaged up. She'd still be flying from place to place trying to convince everyone to trust Dragons and try living with them like her. She was still considering just taking off right now, when she remembered one more reason to stay.

This is where she met Hiccup.

An involuntary smile formed on her lips as Thorunn thought about how she came here and managed to not only become friends with Dusk, but make her first human friend as well. He wanted to help the dragons like her, but more so he seemed like he wanted to help her.

He helped her bandage her injuries, he spent time talking about the many dragons with her, heck he even came over to help her cook food for themselves and the dragons. Looking between him and his cousin, he was like a knight in shining armor.

Her eyes widened at that thought, wondering where that came from as she tried to ignore the burning that rose to her cheeks, reaching forward to splash water on her face.

Pythius watched the girl with a small smile forming, leaning forward and nudging her with her horn since she knew that look that she held before splashing water on her face. She knew she was in thought, but that look was of embarrassment over something. When Thorunn looked to her, she chortled as she saw the light red upon the girl's tan skin.

"Oh hush, you." Thorunn grumbled before reaching a hand out to scratch the girl under the chin, smiling as she purred at the gesture before moving over to rest against the Boneknapper, part of her knowing that she should get back since the sun was setting, while the other part wanted to just stay hidden here in the cove.

Thorunn looked up when she heard a roar, guessing that was Snotlout with his Monstrous Nightmare on his way to their meeting point on the docks, ahead of schedule.

"Well, looks like..." Thorunn stopped short when she heard a thud behind them, looking back to see Toothless was the cause of the noise, Hiccup sliding off his saddle and the moment he did Toothless trotted over to her for a greeting. "Hey boy, what're you two doing out here?" Thorunn asked as she scratched him under the ear, standing up to see what Hiccup wanted when he knew she had somewhere to be.

"Thorunn...I kind of need a second to talk with you." Hiccup said as he walked up to the girl, glancing over Pythius who was watching him in curiosity as to what was going on.

"What is it? I need to go meet Snotlout soon." Thorunn reminded as she noticed he looked tense, knowing something must be wrong by his body language alone.

"I...know. That's why I came out here to talk to you." Hiccup said as he rubbed the back of his neck nervously, not sure how to tell her she shouldn't go flying with Snotlout. He really didn't know fully how she felt about his cousin, so he didn't want to tell her not to go and end up with her furious with him, especially not with Pythius nearby to help her if she gets mad.

"Whats wrong? He canceling?" Thorunn asked, and Hiccup felt himself want to hit Snotlout more when he heard a bit of disappointment in her tone.

"N...no. But...I think you should." Hiccup said as Thorunn raised an eyebrow at him for what he said, wondering why he'd want her to cancel the flight with Snotlout.

"Why? He's been planning this for the past week. He's probably already waiting for me even, since I heard Hookfang's roar earlier." Thorunn said as she glanced back at Pythius, seeing the equally confused look on the Boneknapper's face before Dusk dropped into the cove, easily distracting both her and Toothless to leave the humans to talk.

"Its just...I really don't think you and he should...you know...get together." Hiccup tried to explain, but either way he could think of explaining it to her, he figured wouldn't work to convince her.

Thorunn's eyes narrowed at the teens words as she watched him rub the stubble on his chin nervously, wondering what his reasons could be for not wanting them together.

"Why not, Hiccup? Snotlout helps me out a lot, we've been together a lot in the past week. Also it's the least I can do for him giving me the anti-venom for the Deadly Nadder poison." Thorunn said before walking over to her dragons, still not seeing a good enough reason to cancel on Snotlout out of nowhere, even if she herself was considering it earlier due to her nerves.

"Thorunn... I just don't think he's the right guy for you." Hiccup came out and said, even though he didn't truthfully know who could be right for her. He felt his cheeks flush as the idea of himself popped into mind, but he could never be lucky enough to have someone who didn't yell and scream at him, he was a Hiccup, after all.

"The right guy?" Thorunn questioned, raising an eyebrow at him since he hasn't even spoken to her that much in the past week, and yet he's trying to say that Snotlout wasn't right. "How would you know?" Thorunn asked, keeping her voice steady and calm even if she wanted to demand the answer out of the now extremely nervous teen.

"Thorunn, you just gotta trust me. I know him better than you do." Hiccup tried to explain, but he could see it in her face now that Thorunn wasn't too happy by his words. Great, another hiccup with one of the few girls he actually wanted to trust him openly.

Thorunn laughed at him before turning towards Dusk and Pythius, the Boneknapper looking confused but Dusk looking as annoyed by her by the teens words. It was obvious sometimes how connected she was with Dusk already, now especially since the dragon seemed to mirror her at the moment.

"Know him better? You don't even know _me_ that well, Hiccup." Thorunn hissed, not meaning to give away that she was annoyed but just keeping her eyes on Dusk, giving Pythius the hand signal to take off for home to get some fish.

Pythius leaned forward, nuzzling Thorunn's neck to give her luck, before turning away and taking off into the sky, wanting to get her dinner before Zu tried to.

Hiccup frowned when he noticed Thorunn was getting upset with him, that being the one thing he didn't want to happen. "Thorunn, he's not as sweet and charming as he's been acting. I know I don't know you that well, but I'm trying to look out for you here." Hiccup said, cringing when Thorunn let out a cynical laugh.

"Look out for me? How? Your _girlfriend_ almost killed me a week ago, and _now_ you're looking out for me?" Thorunn questioned, keeping her back to the teen as he began to walk up to her, freezing when he was a few steps away from her as Dusk let out a warning growl. "You didn't even try to get her to feel remorseful, or apologize for poisoning me. Instead you just go off and kiss her." Thorunn growled, eyes widening when she realized she let it slip that she had seen them in her poisoned state.

Hiccup's eyes widened, having forgotten that when Astrid kissed him he saw Dusk leading the trainer down the street moments later. He didn't think she had seen him though. "Thorunn..." Hiccup trailed off, unsure what to say since he never had seen her mad at him before in the time that she's been on Berk.

"I've got to go, so I'll let you go back to Astrid, while I go on my date with Snotlout." Thorunn murmured before leaping onto Dusk's back, the Night Fury giving a snort at Hiccup before taking off into the sky.

When it comes to Astrid, he'd just have let her go. But for some reason he found himself leaping onto Toothless's back and taking off after the girl, not willing to leave things like this. He couldn't have the one girl he had been trying weeks to get to trust him hate him because of his stupid cousin.

Thorunn leaned down against Dusk as the Night Fury soared through the skies, wrapping her arms around the dragon's neck as she tried to keep out the guilt she felt for her attitude towards Hiccup, knowing that he deserved it but unable to deny she didn't want to act as such towards him.

He was nothing but kind to her, he helped her so much. But...she couldn't just forget that his girlfriend poisoned her with her Deadly Nadder, and instead of helping her he goes off with her instead. Thorunn was pulled from her thoughts as Dusk let out a small chitter to capture her attention.

"I'm fine, girl. Let's just...go meet up with Snotlout." Thorunn murmured against her scales, before hearing a roar behind them, glancing back to see Toothless zooming towards them with Hiccup on his back.

"Thorunn, wait!" Hiccup called after them as Dusk gave a chitter of surprise at how the two men were chasing after them.

"Dusk, go quick or he might actually catch up." Thorunn plead, glancing down towards the docks where she could already see Snotlout and Hookfang waiting for her.

Dusk nodded, preparing to shoot ahead, but let out a cry of surprise when Toothless appeared in front of them, keeping them from reaching Snotlout in a straight shot. "Thorunn..." Dusk shot straight up, knowing by her races on land with Toothless that he couldn't possibly keep up in the sky.

She was smaller, yes. But that made her faster too. And she wasn't about to let this teen hurt her friend or upset her any further.

Thorunn held on tight at the straight shot up, wishing she had put her saddle on Dusk before leaving since it was much harder to stay on a sleek, fast Night Fury than a big, bony Boneknapper that had plenty of bones sticking out everywhere for her to hold on to.

Toothless was hot on her trail though, enjoying the challenge since while Dusk may win on land with races, he knew he could be faster in the sky. He caught up, spinning around the female Night Fury teasingly as she looked at him in shock, before pushing forward more.

"Thorunn can you just listen for a moment!" Hiccup yelled to the girl as they finally flattened out, above the clouds now as he tried his hardest to catch the girl's gaze, but her eyes were cast down on Dusk beneath her.

"Just leave me alone." Thorunn said back, loud enough though that Hiccup could still hear her before Dusk fell from their sight, shooting straight down towards the docks below.

Toothless took off right after them, chortling as he easily approached Dusk. She's smaller, lighter. He's bigger, so he'll fall faster than her.

Dusk whipped her head to the side at the sight of Toothless zooming up beside her. Thinking more about them racing on land, she whipped her tail towards him, accidentally throwing their flight path off, screeching to try not to spin out mid air.

Thorunn lost her grip on Dusk's neck when she began to spin, really wishing she had remembered the saddle as she prepared for the fall when her body left the sleek scales of the female Night Fury.

Hiccup's eyes widened before saw Dusk begin to spin out, watching as Thorunn fell from the dragon before he ordered Toothless dive bomb faster.

**Thorunn POV**

I saw a black blur as I slammed my eyes shut, hoping to Thor that Dusk would catch me. I prepared for the feel of her sleek, cool scales under me, but instead warm, strong arms, opening my eyes to be met with worried green eyes. "Are you okay?" Hiccup...he caught me?

"I..." I trailed off upon realizing how close we were, his arms holding me bridal style. No one ever tries to touch me, but now he just rode in on Toothless and caught me in his arms.

I could feel warmth rise to my face, turning away from him as I heard a roar rip through the sky, looking to see Dusk had balanced out with Toothless, glancing down at where the roar had come from. Fire raced up towards us, before Toothless quickly dodged it.

"Hiccup, shouldn't you be back home with _your_ girlfriend, not mine." Snotlout's voice reached us before Hookfang appeared in front of us, Snotlout standing on his head and shooting a furious look at Hiccup, especially when he saw how he was holding me.

"I was helping her. She fell off of Dusk's back." Hiccup growled to him as he let me down to sit on Toothless's back.

I could feel the tension in the air again, so thick that even Toothless and Dusk were now chittering between one another.

"Well, maybe you shouldn't be chasing her through the sky on Toothless then." Snotlout snapped before Hookfang moved closer to us, Snotlout holding out a hand to help me up onto Hookfang. I felt the hand that Toothless still had on me tighten against my skin, looking back at him to see the pleading look in his eyes.

But...no. His girlfriend already tried to kill me once for being near him.

I reached forward and took Snotlout's hand, forcing a smile back at him when his own lips lifted from the scowl towards Hiccup into a smile, lifting me easily onto Hookfang's head.

I looked back to see Hiccup looking down at Toothless now, but it doesn't take seeing someone's face to know they're disappointed. Once he had me seated in Hookfang's saddle, I looked down at the leather, not wanting to watch as Hiccup zoomed off on Toothless, Dusk right behind them.

"Alright, now let's get going then." Snotlout said as he seated himself behind me, arms going around me as I tried not to flinch at his touch.

His arms felt warm and strong as well. But...I didn't feel as safe as I did when Hiccup caught me from my fall from Dusk.

**Hiccup POV**

I tried to ignore Toothless and Dusk my best while they bounced around and played with one another. I'm really just not in the mood for their best friend attitude.

It's not fair. Why does he get her? Why does she pick _him_ over me to trust? I've been there for her from day one, and yet even after I save her from falling from Dusk's back, she still goes right to him. A guy whom she barely knows.

Toothless spun past me, Dusk on his back as I turned away from them with a sigh, wishing that I was as lucky as him to be able to make best friends with someone that easily.

I stood up to go to the Great Hall and ignore the two Night Fury's, when I felt fingertips trailing across my waist, looking back as Astrid rested her chin on my shoulder. "Have you forgiven me yet, Hiccup? Cause I was thinking we could go flying." Astrid murmured, and I immediately shoved her off for the idea she proposed.

"Astrid, I'm not interested. I just want to be left alone." I grumbled, pushing her hand away when she tried to take my arm before skulking down the street towards the Great Hall.

Why bother going flying, when the girl who is a lot like me doesn't even trust me.

**Third Person POV**

Astrid watched Hiccup skulk away from her, wanting to be mad at him for ignoring her. But...from the look on his face...he looked absolutely miserable.

They may be an on and off again couple, and she may hate him at times, but she can never hate him when he looks as miserable as he does now.

Astrid looked down at the road as she realized that maybe, instead of helping herself, she should try helping Hiccup for once.

Toothless and Dusk had watched the whole sight for a little while before Toothless began to lead Dusk off into the forest, chittering happily when a race was begun. He leaped over fallen trees easily, barreling through bushes as Dusk kept up with him, both circling each other and getting ahead of one another every so often.

Before long, they were crashing into a clearing that they been to once before. Dusk's eyes widened at the sight of where Toothless led her to, but all Toothless did was flash his signature smile at her. He had good reasoning to bring her here tonight, since it's been three months to the night that he met her.

A small red tinted the flesh underneath Dusk's scales, fortunately hidden by the scales though as Toothless trotted across the tall grass, sitting down dead center of the clearing as he waited for Dusk to join him, tilting his head to the side when she just watched him in confusion.

It took Toothless a few minutes to realize that she didn't know what to do, jumping up and walking over to her to try to lead her to the clearing. Getting behind the younger female, he gently began to nudge her rear, watching her inch forward until she was in the center of the tall grass.

Toothless smiled at her innocently as he sat down in front of her, curling his tail around his legs as she looked about nervously, unsure what the male was planning.

When seeing the nervous, unsure look on Dusk's small, innocent face, Toothless's smile dropped, moving forward slightly to nudge Dusk and remind her that she was completely safe with him. He was her best friend, he wasn't going to harm her or let anything else harm her either.

Upon realizing that this was her best friend, and he was going to keep her safe, Dusk let a small smile form upon her maw, jumping forward and pinning Toothless down on his back in the grass, innocent smile back once again as he looked up in surprise at her actions.

Toothless smirked up at the female when he realized that she wanted to wrestle, trailing his tail across her rear to distract her before pushing forward, throwing her off before dawning a fighting stance, tail low to the ground and swaying as his eyes narrowed into slits, playful smile still held on his lips though as he watched Dusk drop into her own fighting stance.

Toothless growled playfully at Dusk before lunging forward, claws outstretched as the female, quick as lightning, dodged, swatting her friend on the back with her tail as she kept her eyes trained on him. Toothless chortled before lunging again, smile never leaving his maw as their game continued.

Before long, Toothless had Dusk pinned down on her stomach in the grass, chortling victoriously above her as he laid down on top of her, tongue flicking out at her ear when she began to protest his weight above her. He felt her immediately relax upon his wet tongue striking her ear, before rolling off of her back, laying on his own in the grass as he looked up at the starry night sky.

Toothless had been wondering about how their two human friends were doing when he felt a warm, wet tongue strike his cheek, glancing to the side in shock as he was met with Dusk's mischievous golden eyes, surprised by the gesture since she was so innocent normally.

Flipping back over onto his own stomach, Toothless extended his wings, one going over Dusk's smaller frame as she moved against his larger body, nuzzling her face under his chin as the male let out a small sigh of content at their proximity, liking this much more than when he and Pythius would lay out in her front yard at night and relax.

Though...then again. Pythius was a Boneknapper. She was like a sister to him. But Dusk...she's a female Night Fury. And a rather attractive one at that.

Dusk let out a small purr as she nuzzled Toothless's throat, tongue flicking out at his scales as the male let out a small purr of his own, pulling his friend tighter to his own body as he pulled his head back, leaning down to press his forehead to Dusk's.

Snotlout helped Thorunn down off of Hookfang's back once they landed in front of her house, waving him away once Thorunn had her back to them. Fortunately, the dragon listened for once and stomped off to go get some fish, leaving Snotlout alone with Thorunn as she began to walk up to her door.

The house was silent as the two teens walked in, and Snotlout silently thanked every god for giving him complete alone time with Thorunn finally, since every other time she was with him, there was either his cousin with him, or one of her dragons.

"So...how's your shoulder feel?" Snotlout asked, trying to make small talk as Thorunn knelt down to start a fire in the fire pit.

"It's fine, probably going to have to soak it tomorrow, but fine." Thorunn murmured as Snotlout knelt down beside her as the fire pit ignited, casting a warm glow across both of them as he sat back next to the fire, Thorunn beside him with her arms around her legs.

It didn't take a genius to see she was obviously deep in thought with how her legs were pulled tight to her chest, chin resting against her knees as she stared down at the fire. Snotlout reached a hand out, fingertips brushing against her cheek as she was snapped out of her thoughts by the touch.

"You okay?" Snotlout asked, dawning a small smile in hopes to get her to open up to him.

Thorunn looked down at his hand that had touched her for a moment before back up at his smile, forcing one of her own as she tried to ignore the sad thoughts at the back of her mind. "Yeah, I'm fine Snotlout." Thorunn muttered before Snotlout scooted over closer to her.

"You sure? Cause if not I can help you." Snotlout purred as sweetly as he could, reaching his hand out to cup the side of her face, raising an eyebrow when she flinched at his touch this time.

"I...I'm fine. Really." Thorunn assured as she looked down, aware her face was red by now since she wasn't by any means used to treatment like this.

Snotlout wondered for a moment if this was Hiccup's doing before remembering that Thorunn had no experience with any of this, smile widening as he tried to keep his thoughts clean over how he could teach her so much. "No need to be shy, Thorunn. I'm not gonna hurt you, like my moron cousin's girlfriend." Snotlout reminded, fingers tracing over her hand that was on the ground between them.

"Cousin?" Thorunn asked, confused since no one had told her that the two men were cousins. If he hadn't said it, she probably would have never known. They were so different, after all. Snotlout was very vocal, a bit brash with his dragon, and by far more muscular than Hiccup since his muscles bulged out of his armor.

Hiccup, while a bit taller than Snotlout, was by far more charismatic. He didn't speak as much, but when he did it was subtle, intelligent. Well, except for the occasional boasting about his skills as a dragon trainer. The other thing was that he was held better together than Snotlout. Snotlout obviously had a fiery temper, while Hiccup didn't let it show around others.

That, and the fact that his clothing fits him and doesn't make his muscles bulge out, also prove that he is more well put than Snotlout. Though, he is the heir to the Hooligan tribe, so it is to be expected. Just...looking between the two men, it's very hard to see that Hiccup and Snotlout are cousins.

Hiccup is a well put together gentleman, while Snotlout a loud, seductive sweetheart. Or, at least he was a sweetheart to her.

Thorunn had been so enveloped in her thoughts that she hadn't even heard a word that Snotlout had been saying, only coming out of her thoughts when he laid a hand upon her own. "Hey, I know how to help you feel better." Snotlout murmured quietly as Thorunn finally realized how close he was to her, instinct telling her to try to get away now.

"Snotlout, I'm fine. You don't need to worry." Thorunn assured once more as she moved away to go get some fish to put on the fire.

Thorunn had been bent over, grabbing the roasting spike from under the cabinet when she felt arms wrap around her waist, thoughts trailing back to Hiccup and how his arms had been around her when he caught her, before she remembered that this was Snotlout, especially when he pulled her back into his own form.

"Come on, I'll find whatever you need, you just go sit by the fire and warm up." Snotlout purred sweetly to her as he tried to lead the trainer back to the fire, knowing he was earning extra points for the gentlemanly ways.

Once the fish was on the fire, Snotlout sat back down beside her, arm around her waist once more as he prepared to take the next step. It was about then that the door flew open, dragons stomping in.

"Well, their back now." Thorunn mused with a smile at her two Boneknappers.

Snotlout frowned, arms crossing over his chest at how the dragons always had to ruin everything.

* * *

**Well, I'd say Snotlout's starting to overstep his boundaries, now wouldn't you? Well, I hope you all enjoyed as much as I do writing it. Again, if yall have any questions or ideas, feel free to put them in a review and I'll see what I can do.**


	11. Making Up

**Greetings once again loyal readers! I'd first like to begin by saying, I'm sorry if there's been some errors in my chapters. It took me till today to see that the doc manager likes to be funny and cut out sentences. I've been repairing them though, this chapter actually gave it away to me since as I was editing it, I noticed it took out a the beginning of the chapter.**

**Good thing I double checked.**

**Anyways, let me know if there's any errors or anything, I'll let you all get right on to the chapter though. Enjoy and please do me the favor of reviewing, since I've only got one review unfortunately.**

* * *

Dusk watched curiously as Thorunn continued to hide inside the Blacksmith's shop, working on repairing her riding vest. She hadn't had a chance to fix it since Stormfly had ruined it, and now that it's been two weeks since the attack, she was finally well enough to work again on it.

More so right now though, Dusk just had a feeling the teen was hiding from the teen known as Snotlout. A few times she had barged in to see the teen trying to get closer to Thorunn. Each time Thorunn fled behind the Night Fury.

It was quiet obvious that Thorunn, much like she used to be, was not interested in taking any steps further with the human. She didn't want to go further with any Night Fury herself.

Well, then she met Toothless. Who is a rather handsome, sweet Night Fury who's shown her that it's fine to open up and snuggle with him in their grassy clearing.

Dusk looked up when she heard a snort behind her, tail swatting the source on the head as he gave a whine of protest at her methods. She turned her golden eyes to him, sticking her tongue out at the playful Night Fury as he flashed her his signature smile.

Toothless's smile went from happy, to ecstatic when Dusk moved forward, nuzzling her face under his chin in their normal greeting. Some of the nearby villagers cooed and awed at their display, but fortunately their trainers still didn't know about their blossoming affection for one another.

Though, then again, their trainers weren't even speaking with one another right now.

Dusk pulled away from Toothless, turning back to Thorunn who was just inside the window, resewing the flying wings to her vest as Dusk cast her eyes back at Toothless, who just shrugged his shoulders at the sight.

The two humans were being childish, as far as he saw it. They were very close for a bit there, and then they let Snotlout and Astrid, of anyone, to get in the way of their friendship. Toothless knew he would never let anyone come between him and Dusk.

Toothless nudged Dusk's rear to get her to take her eyes off of Thorunn for a little while to come get some food with him, Dusk reluctantly following after him when he led the way.

"How ya even made something like that, I have to wonder." Gobber mused as he stood behind Thorunn, looking down at the invention that had been ruined at the hands of Stormfly.

"It worked, for a little while before I got shot with a spike." Thorunn reminded, her good calf rubbing against the still scabbed and weaker injury on her other calf.

"Yeah...sorry about that." Thorunn shot up at her voice, whirling to see Astrid leaning against the door frame, arms folded across her chest.

Fortunately, Gobber had been told about what happened between the two girls two weeks ago. Stepping between the two girls like the protective elder he was for the newer girl, Gobber cast Astrid a warning look. "Lass, if you're here to pick a fight, you'd best be walkin' away." Gobber advised Astrid, serious for once.

"I'm not here to pick a fight, Gobber." Astrid assured, glancing between him and the teen on the other side of the room as she realized for the first time just how much she was like Hiccup. She was quiet, but intelligent enough to know how to create inventions such as her wing suit.

It's no wonder Hiccup's been so angry or depressive the past week since they haven't talked.

Now, Astrid wanted to be angry, or jealous because he cared so much about his friend. But, she couldn't just sit and let Hiccup suffer because she got between the two and put some tension on their already fragile friendship.

"I wanted to apologize." Astrid revealed, and at that both the blacksmith's and the rider's eyes widened in shock at the idea of Astrid actually apologizing for something she'd done.

"Why now?" Thorunn asked after a few seconds of silently letting it sink in what she was here for. "You challenged me two weeks ago, almost killing me, and now you want to apologize. Why?" Thorunn asked as she made sure to stay behind the bulky blacksmith, since hopefully if the temperamental blonde tried to attack, he'd stop her.

"Because...obviously I should have apologized after. And, because I can see pretty well that it's not just you I hurt." Astrid explained, surprised when Thorunn dawned a confused look at her saying that it wasn't just her she hurt.

"What do you mean? Both of my dragons are fine." Thorunn muttered, turning her back on the blonde as she went back to fixing her riding vest, deciding that this time she'll use something stronger for attaching the wings to her vest.

"I'm talking about you and Hiccup." Thorunn's head shot up at the mention, glancing back at Astrid with a suspicious look since, while neither of them had spoken in a week, it shouldn't be that obvious that they weren't doing so well in the friendship area.

"Hiccup's fine." Thorunn grumbled before turning back to her work once more to the blonde female, head lowering to make sure she was focused on her work.

Astrid frowned as she realized Thorunn wasn't going to willingly discuss this matter with her, motioning to Gobber to leave them alone for a bit. The old viking narrowed his eyes at her, not too sure about leaving them alone since Astrid had almost killed her on two occasions, but ultimately decided to leave them be when Hiccup was brought up.

He may not speak with the teens that often, but he knows enough to know that Astrid didn't want to share the teen whom she still thought of as her own. Also, he knew deep down that Hiccup had a soft spot for the Murderous Tribe brunette, especially when he saw him walk by earlier and double back upon seeing Thorunn in the Blacksmith working with him.

And if the way Thorunn's been surprisingly quiet has anything to say either, he'd say she's just as deep in thought about their strained friendship.

Once he was gone, Astrid turned back to the quiet brunette who was still working in the corner, walking over and sitting down on the extra chair in the room to try to get her to talk willingly.

Hiccup frowned as he sat on the docks, prosthetic tucked beneath him as he hung his other leg in the water, eyes set on his reflection in the water as he tried to clear his mind. No matter how hard he tried though, his mind was stuck on two things. One, was Thorunn sitting in the Blacksmith working with Gobber.

He knew she was good with creating things. Heck, she even flew with out her dragons for a little while before being shot down. He still wanted to ask her about that idea, maybe put forth some of his own suggestions for the idea. But, she probably still won't talk with him. He was more so surprised though by how comfortable she looked in his favorite place.

He really wished she would just talk to him. Or that he could talk to her, or at least walk near her without Snotlout swooping in and taking her away from him.

That was the other thought stuck in his mind. Was him going out for a flight with Toothless, and instead seeing Hookfang perched on a ledge on the mountain.

He didn't think it was much, just Hookfang hiding from Snotlout again. But, when he flew in closer to try to lure the Monstrous Nightmare back home, instead he saw a dim little fire, and laying beside it was Snotlout with his arm around Thorunn's waist as she watched the fire.

If anything could hurt him more, it would be pretty hard to compete with that, since she barely let him lay a finger on her, let alone snuggle by a camp fire.

Hiccup felt his cheeks warming up at the thought of ever getting to do that, before kicking his foot through the water.

Carefully pulling his prosthetic out from under him, Hiccup moved to stand up, only to hear someone sit down beside him, looking over in shock when he realized it was Thorunn. "Hi." Thorunn murmured upon sitting down, curling her legs up underneath her.

Hiccup was silent in shock, since he was expecting Snotlout to be with her. It took him a moment, but he finally himself together enough to talk. "Hey." Hiccup murmured back in response as he settled back down on the dock, eyes flickering over towards her every so often.

Astrid watched Thorunn sit down beside Hiccup on the dock, surprised she actually believed her and went to talk with him. After all, Thorunn had kept a good distance between them while they talked. Heck, she even looked ready to dash when she mentioned that she knew she was just as upset about not being able to talk to Hiccup as he was about not being able to talk to her.

Hiccup was about to ask Thorunn about why she came over to him, but was distracted when Dusk dive bombed the water in front of them, splashing both teens. "Dusk!" Thorunn protested as the female floated on her back in front of them, chortling as Toothless stood back behind the two wings, having used his wings to shield himself from the water.

Thorunn glanced over at Hiccup when he stood up, needing to dry his prosthetic so it doesn't rust as she stood up, glaring at Dusk for the prank before following Hiccup up onto the shore.

"Your dragons love to pull pranks, huh?" Hiccup asked as he stomped his prosthetic on the ground, eyes on the metal he used for his leg instead of up at Thorunn.

"You need my help?" Thorunn asked as she silently thanked Thor for letting her heal up so easily.

"I'm fine, I'm used to this by now." Hiccup muttered as he looked over at the two watching Night Fury's who both held the same, mischievous smile they had when they pulled the prank.

Thorunn glanced over at Dusk before deciding that maybe in the middle of town, where people could be watching and passing rumors, wasn't the best place to try to talk with him about their strained friendship. "Hey, you mind coming with me to the cove?" Thorunn asked quietly, so quiet that she didn't even know if Hiccup heard her.

Hiccup tried to ignore the nervous flutter he felt in his chest at her quiet, almost shy words before giving a short nod of agreement, waving Toothless and Dusk away before leading the way to the cove, nervousness rising when he realized Thorunn too looked nervous as well.

Toothless and Dusk both exchanged mischievous smiles before taking off running after their trainers, wanting to know what was going on that they wanted to be alone.

Unfortunately though, the Night Fury's weren't the only dragons that saw the two teens heading for the woods. Hookfang gave a snort before looking up towards where his rider was seated between his horns, able to tell by the way his fists were clamping down harder and harder on his horns that he was none too pleased.

Thorunn kept her gaze anywhere that he wasn't. On the ground, the trees, the noises of wildlife in the forest. Anywhere he wasn't, her eyes were. The nervous flutter in her chest made this so. She hadn't felt this nervous since she was back on her home island. It made her want to be sick, but at the same time confused as to why one teen made her feel this way.

Thor, even Snotlout didn't make her feel this nervous. Though, that was mainly because everything he would try something, Dusk, Zu, or Pythius would burst in and interrupt.

Hiccup's eyes trailed over to Thorunn as she jumped over a fallen tree, knowing she was much better now than she'd been. He couldn't see her shoulder, due to her vest, but he could see her exposed calf when she jumped and her pants lifted up. It looked like nothing had even happened, so fortunately Snotlout was smart enough to make sure a scar didn't form.

But...he still wished it would have been him to help her. The one to get some time to gain her trust, to learn her secrets, to go for night flights, to snuggle by the...

Hiccup shook his head to get the thoughts out of his mind, looking up to see the Cove in the distance. Carefully sliding down the side, the moment they were in Thorunn moved over towards the tree where he had once seen her hang upside down from, sitting up against the trunk of it.

Hiccup sat down opposite Thorunn, noticing how her own eyes were on the ground and shifting his own down out of the nervous burst that hit his chest over what she could want to say that she was so afraid to say.

Dusk opened her wing as Toothless tried to shove past her, wanting to look and see what's going on. Instead of just behaving and staying behind her open wing though, he went under, smiling at Dusk when she noticed he was under her wing now. Rolling her eyes at her fellow playful Night Fury, Dusk quickly turned her golden eyes back to the humans.

Now normally, she would want to interrupt. It was very fun interrupting when Thorunn was with Snotlout. The boy's nostrils would flare, eyes narrowing and face turning a darker shade of red, while Thorunn would just smile at how the Night Fury wanted to be a part of everything.

But, looking between the two trainers, Dusk knew this was not a time to interrupt. For one of the rare times, she noticed Thorunn was shy, nervous about something. And Hiccup was by no means better, the only difference was he kept stealing glances over at Thorunn.

Toothless chittered his plan to Dusk, lunging forward to go interrupt, but Dusk grabbed him by the tail with her mouth, pulling him back so that they could watch, but not interrupt the two teens.

Thorunn finally looked up at Hiccup in time to see him quickly turn his gaze towards the water nearby, having been trying to read the girl to see what it was she wanted to say to him. "I...I talked with Astrid earlier." Thorunn began, immediately surprising Hiccup since last he knew both girls absolutely despised the other. Or, at least Astrid despised Thorunn.

"She didn't threaten you, did she?" Hiccup asked right away, hoping that the blonde who only wanted him because his feelings for her weren't as strong anymore wouldn't threaten her again.

When Thorunn gave a little laugh, Hiccup felt himself relax a bit more. He missed that laugh since Astrid and Snotlout came between him. Maybe it was because it was so soft, so gentle and sweet, that it made him feel a bit better to hear it. "No, no even if she wanted to, Gobber was right outside waiting in case she did." Thorunn advised, pulling her legs up against her as her arms wrapped around them, chin resting comfortably on her knees as she finally settled her eyes on Hiccup.

She didn't notice it before, but he actually looks a bit more run down. His hair was shaggy, unkempt as apposed to it normally being kept pushed back and tidy. His facial hair too was another sign of something wrong, since last she saw he had that cute little stubble that ran across his jaw line and crested on his chin, but now it was all scruffy and grown out, like he didn't care it was there.

Astrid was right. He was more affected by the break in their friendship than she had thought. She didn't even know why, since she was just some dragon trainer. What was so special about her?

"So...what did Astrid have to talk about with you then?" Hiccup asked as he cast his eyes on Thorunn once more to see her studying him, forcing the red down that tried to rise to his face over having her stare at him from where she sat up against the tree. He should be used to this by now though, everyone stared. He was the Dragon Trainer of Berk, and heir to the Hooligan tribe.

"About you and I not talking in the past week." Thorunn murmured, eyes dropping down to her knees as she felt her cheeks warm slightly, not exactly wanting to have this touchy, feely moment since, before she came to Berk, all she had were her dragons.

Hiccup finally lost his control over the red coming up to his pale skin, turning his face towards the water until he remembered why they hadn't talked, still wanting to punch his cousin in the nose. "We've been busy. I've had my Dad trying to prepare me for being chief, you've been healing and spending time with Snotlout." Hiccup grumbled, hissing Snotlout's name out like it was a disease.

Thorunn raised an eyebrow at the way he hissed his cousins name before deciding to ignore it, focusing on the conversation at time. "Well, she said you've been a bit...seclusive." Thorunn muttered, unsure of how exactly to phrase it since Astrid's words were he was just sad and hiding in his house working most of the time.

"I've been busy, my Dad doesn't want to stop Chief training for very long." Hiccup grumbled as his eyes focused on the water in the cove, since he didn't want to think then about how his father was so bent on him learning to be Chief. He didn't want to be, he probably would be the worst chief Berk had. He was a Hiccup, after all. He's no Stoick the Vast.

"You don't sound happy about that." Thorunn's voice broke him from his thoughts as he looked back at her to see a worried, yet examining gaze in her eyes as she tried to understand how the heir wouldn't be happy to become chief of such a wonderful island.

Hiccup sighed, running his fingers through his messy hair as he tried to figure out how to explain to the traveler his views on being chief. "It's not that I'm not happy. I mean, I'm spending more time now with my dad than I have in my whole life. It's just...I know I'm not going to be a very good chief." Hiccup muttered, eyes falling back to the ground at his own words since he knew, if he was a bad chief, the tribe would fall, his father would hate him, the tribe would hate him, everything would just be a disaster.

Thorunn leaned forward upon Hiccup's assumption that he would be a bad chief. "You know, I may not know you as well as I could, but I'm pretty sure you'd still make an amazing chief." Thorunn spoke up, surprising both since she normally would never willingly say something so nice to someone.

Hiccup's eyes widened in surprise at her words before looking up to catch the glowing green eyes that had ensnared him in this very spot once before, surprised to see that she was actually being genuine about him being a good chief. "How? Look at me, I'm a Hiccup. Everything I do is either an accident, or a disaster." Hiccup grumbled, wanting to look down but unable to since his gaze was locked with Thorunn's.

Thorunn let out another laugh at his words, surprising him further as she leaned back again, fingers reaching to her chest to trace the scars she had received before she left her old home. "Hiccup, people make mistakes. They hurt themselves, or others. They run away. They fight themselves, or others. Stupid things that can't alter who they actually are. Someone can be a hiccup and still be a great leader." Thorunn tried to explain, ignoring one part of her words since she knew, it was directed towards herself and not her.

"But...I'm not my Dad. I'm not a great leader. I'm not meant to lead the tribe. I'm just...Hiccup." Hiccup muttered as he noticed how Thorunn was now tracing the scars on her chest, trying to catch her gaze for an explanation but instead she leaned forward once more.

"Exactly, you're Hiccup. You're not Stoick, you're not Snotlout or Spitelout, you're...you." Thorunn advised, poking one finger out to touch his leather bound chest in the center. "That is what makes me believe that you'd still be good enough to lead. I've seen you break up the fights with your friends, you lead the dragons, just because you're not your father doesn't mean you'd make a bad chief." Thorunn advised as Hiccup's gaze locked with hers once more.

Her eyes were warm, truthful. He hadn't even spoken with her in a week, but yet she was bent on making sure he knew he would make a good chief. A small, sweet smile found it's way to her lips, and he quickly returned it with one of his own at how, even when they were kept apart, she still understood him better than anyone else on the island. "Thank you." Hiccup muttered quietly as she fell back into her spot beside the tree again, smile still held.

"I don't wanna hear you say you'll be a bad chief again, now." Thorunn advised, pointing a finger at him accusingly as he held up his hands in surrender, both still smiling since the once tense, nervous air that they had over them finally disappeared into comfortable, happy friendship once more.

Dusk dawned a smile as she watched the two teens, unable to hear what they were discussing before but able to tell that things were a lot less strained between them now by how both visibly relaxed after their talk. It made her relax a bit more even, since even if he had upset her friend with that blonde trainer, and hadn't spoken with her in a week, Dusk knew there was a bond there between the both of them.

Heck, maybe the bond would even get as strong as the bond that Thorunn shared with her, Pythius and Zu. From watching the two teens laugh and relax more with each second, she wouldn't be surprised by it. They were a lot alike, after all.

Toothless nudged Dusk with his tail, casting her a pouting look since, while he didn't mind spying on the humans, he would prefer more to be out playing with her, or going back to get some lunch. Fortunately, Dusk leaned over, tongue flickering out at his snout before rising to go play with him, tail swaying behind her as Toothless chortled, running after his fellow Night Fury.

Hiccup smiled as he watched Thorunn jump up, dashing over towards the water as he wondered what she was planning. He got up to go over and see what she was doing, only to stop in his tracks when he saw her start to remove her vest. "What're you doing?" Hiccup asked as Thorunn glanced back at him, shrugging at his question.

"It's actually hot out for once, I'm gonna go for a swim." Thorunn advised before Hiccup turned around as she stripped down to her wraps, jumping into the water as he looked back to see her up to her shoulders in the water. "Wanna join?" Thorunn asked with a smile up at Hiccup as he walked over to stand near the edge of the water.

Hiccup kicked out his prosthetic to show her it. "I can't swim with this, it's metal." Hiccup advised, face flushing when Thorunn moved out of the water so she was standing thigh deep in the water.

"You can take it off, can't you?" Thorunn asked as she nodded towards his prosthetic, knowing that it couldn't be permanently attached.

Hiccup frowned a bit as he sat down at the edge of the water. "I'd really prefer not to." Hiccup said as he looked down at the metal contraption strapped to his leg. He looked up when Thorunn moved back up onto the shore, sitting down beside him as he tried to ignore how she was only in wraps.

He couldn't help but notice when he noticed the scars on her chest again, broken from his gaze when Thorunn shoved his arm. "Stop staring, I'd expect that from Snotlout, not you." Thorunn said as Hiccup immediately felt his face flare with heat, turning away as Thorunn's sweet giggle hit his ears, making it worse.

"I wasn't staring at what you think. I was looking at the scars." Hiccup said once he figured he had himself under better control, looking back to see the smile that had been on Thorunn's lips was now a frown at his mention. "What happened Thorunn?" Hiccup asked as he turned to face her, watching as she pulled her pants on, silent as she continued.

"It...it's nothing, Hiccup. Just an old accident." Thorunn muttered as she pulled her boots on, about to pull her tunic back on when she felt a hand on her forearm, surprised that Hiccup had the courage to lay a hand on her since he looked very nervous before about her presence.

Looking over at the viking, Thorunn was met with worried, yet carrying green eyes. She was surprised, since not even Snotlout, who was doing everything to try to woo her, looked at her like that. She felt a warmth bubbling in her stomach for a second before turning her gaze away.

"You know you can trust me, Thorunn." Hiccup reminded as he watched her look down at the ground before back up at him, looking like it actually pained her to be talking about this. "Was it...Zu?" Hiccup asked as he motioned towards the three claw marks on her skin. He knew that the older dragon had a temper, but the marks, now that he looked closer, looked a bit small for even his claws.

"No...it was Dusk." Thorunn as her fingers traced over the raised, white marks on her skin, Hiccup's eyes widening since as far as he saw, Dusk and Thorunn were as connected already as he and Toothless. "It happened when we met, when I was nine." Thorunn explained as her eyes flickered over to Hiccup to see the shocked, yet apologetic look.

"Why?" All Hiccup could muster was a why it happened. Dusk was a sweet Night Fury, she didn't look like she could ever hurt Thorunn.

Thorunn was about to explain, when a roar cut through the air behind them, both looking back to see Hookfang standing over them, Snotlout standing between his horns before jumping down to interrupt the two teens little "intimate" moment that he'd seen.

Thorunn quickly pulled her tunic back on as Snotlout hit the ground, looking ready to pummel someone before Hiccup stood up, knowing where this was going. "What the hell are you doing with _my_ girlfriend while she's under-dressed?!" Snotlout demanded angrily, his voice drawing the attention of the two nearby Night Fury's as they sat perched above in a tree.

There was that look again. Nostrils flared, eyes narrowed, face red with rage. This was not going to end well, and Dusk knew it. Toothless did as well, if the way he was perched ready to jump down and help at any second meant anything.

"Snotlout, calm down. I was just swimming." Thorunn advised, showing her still wet hair for proof, but instead he just pulled her behind him and got right back up in Hiccup's face, not afraid of his cousin and wanting to beat him or feed him to Hookfang for even being out here alone with Thorunn, let alone see her half dressed.

"I'm her friend, Snotlout. I'm allowed to talk with her." Hiccup reminded Snotlout as the fiery tempered viking wanted to gut punch him. Snotlout took a step towards Hiccup, only to feel a firm hand catch his chest, looking down to see Thorunn step between the both of them.

Hiccup was surprised at first to see the shorter girl step between the both of them, since he didn't think her to be one to willingly try to stop a fight. And knowing Snotlout, he would want this to be a fight even if he didn't want to fight his brash cousin.

"Thorunn, move." Snotlout growled, turning his glare back to Hiccup as he shoved Thorunn's hand off his chest, reaching a hand out to grab Hiccup by his leather covered vest, only to feel a strong grip on his wrist, glancing back at Thorunn to see she now held a firm, annoyed glare in her own glowing, green eyes.

"If you try that again, I'll throw you into the pond instead of catching your hand." Thorunn threatened, surprising both men since, as far as they knew, Thorunn was the sweet, quiet dragon trainer that kept to herself and couldn't hurt a fly.

Reluctantly, Snotlout relaxed his arm, Thorunn releasing him once he did. He glared at Hiccup once more before stepping back, Thorunn's annoyed glare softening once he was back a bit.

Hiccup watched Thorunn silently, surprised she was so willing to stand up to Snotlout, since he was used to seeing her snuggling up to him, not fighting back. He tried to clear the sick feeling he got in his stomach at that visual before realizing that Snotlout was still glaring angrily at him.

"I'm allowed to talk with him, Snotlout. I don't belong to you." Thorunn reminded the brute of a viking as he kept his glare locked on Hiccup, hearing Thorunn but more so thinking about when he can beat his cousin into the ground.

"Thorunn and I are allowed to be friends, Snotlout. She doesn't have to spend every second of her time with you." Hiccup reminded before Snotlout tried to come after him again, only for Thorunn to immediately intervene again.

"Snotlout, go. Hiccup is right. I'm allowed to be friends with him and talk with him whenever I want." Thorunn growled, leaning up to be at eye-level with Snotlout as he gave her a surprised look before finally backing down fully, stomping back to where Hookfang was still standing waiting in the event he needed to be used in a fight.

Hookfang snorted at the two teens once Snotlout was back up on his head, stomping the ground before taking off into the air, leaving Hiccup and Thorunn alone in the cove once more.

Once the coast was clear, Dusk and Toothless crept back out of the area, taking off running once they were out of the cove so that they could get back to playing.

Hiccup smiled once Snotlout was gone, about to remark about his cousin, until he saw the troubled look on Thorunn's face as she went to go sit back down next to the water, pulling her legs to her chest once more as Hiccup sat down beside her.

"You alright, Thorunn?" Hiccup asked quietly as he took in how she looked like an innocent girl now, as apposed to the brave, strong viking he saw stand up to Snotlout not even twenty minutes prior. She looked up at him for a second, before back down at the grass beneath them.

"I'm fine, Hiccup. It's just...Snotlout." Thorunn murmured as she gripped some of the grass in one of her hands, pulling at it as she tried not to let her frustration over the brute show.

She looked up from the grass when she felt Hiccup's hand on her shoulder, being met with comforting eyes as she felt the warmth of his fingers on her shoulder, feeling warmth try to rise to her face as well as she lowered her face to the ground. "You don't need to take that from him. You're allowed to be your own person, Thorunn." Hiccup reminded Thorunn as he noticed her avert her gaze from him. "He doesn't own you." Hiccup finished, pulling his hand from her shoulder since he figured it was his touch that made her feel uncomfortable.

"I...I know he doesn't." Thorunn muttered, unable to forget how the situation reminded her a lot of her childhood before realizing Hiccup moved his hand off of her, part of her wanting the comfort at the moment though. "Sometimes I really wonder why I'm still here on Berk." Thorunn voiced, surprised that that one slipped out.

Hiccup was shocked at first by her words, before the hurt settled over what she had said. He inched away from her slightly, eyes on the ground before he felt small fingers on his arm, wanting to pull away out of her touch, until her next words hit his ear.

"But...its easy to see why I'm here when there's someone like you here, Hiccup." Thorunn murmured to the teen, cheeks turning a light shade of red since, having grown up with dragons, she wasn't very good at talking with people on such a sweeter level.

Hiccup felt his own cheeks warm at the girls words, eyes locking on her fingers that curled around his bicep before flickering up to see the small red that tinged the tan skinned female viking's face. "So, I make it worth living here, huh?" Hiccup asked as a small smile formed on his lips, surprised by his cocky tone since he normally only spoke to Toothless like that.

Though, the Night Fury was his best friend.

"Don't get cocky now, Hiccup." Thorunn advised, smile forming as well over how, even with a tender moment like that, Hiccup managed to keep things cool and even earn a smile out of her.

"Alright, but only because you asked nicely." Hiccup agreed, before his eyes dipped from her own to the scars that came out of the top of her tunic, being immediately reminded of their earlier conversation before Snotlout had interrupted them.

Thorunn's eyes followed Hiccup's gaze, frowning when he realized he was once again focused on her scars again.

Hiccup was about to open his mouth to ask how she had received them, when suddenly a big wave of water crashed over them, both turning to the pond to see the prankster Night Fury's had found them once more. "Toothless!" Hiccup protested, turning to Thorunn to see she was now laughing at how the dragons had managed to sneak in and drop into the water.

"You always manage to get me, Dusk." Thorunn muttered as the female Night Fury came up onto the shore to lay beside her friend. Thorunn laid back against her, silently thanking the dragons for helping her advert talking about her past with Hiccup.

Dusk gave a toothless smile at Thorunn as well, more than willing to help avoid talking about her past.

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**A sweet little filler of a chapter, wouldn't you say? Next chapter though is going to be a lot more interesting, since we finally get an answer as to what Hiccup asked her. I've been looking forward to this point.**

**Though, being me, it's already written out and put up in the doc manager.**

**If you all want it today though, I'd be more than willing to oblige if I get maybe five reviews. If not we'll just wait until tomorrow.**

**Anyways, enough rambling. Thank you as always for reading! Love to see the views this story's getting.**


	12. A Dark Past

**Greetings once more readers! I'd first like to begin by saying thank you to the one person that has reviewed more recently. I'm glad to hear someone is actually enjoying this story so much since, at this point, I've written all the way up to chapter 16.**

**Yeah, I kind of got caught up in the thing and was writing non-stop yesterday.**

**Anyways, again thank you, and I hope I keep the story up to your expectations. Also, as in response to the comment about Snotlout, I will let this slip that I was considering another story that focuses on him after this one, since this one was written to focus more on Hiccup and Toothless.**

**Again, thanks for the review and for reading, and enjoy this exciting new chapter!**

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Stoick looked around the village streets silently, having been searching for his son for hours now. His temper was wearing very thin at this point, since the boy knew he was supposed to be at home training with him to become the next chief.

This was the second time this week that he had vanished like this. And no matter where he looked, be it on land, or in the air on his own dragon, he never managed to find the boy.

At this point, he was getting close to charging Gobber to be his guard, just to ensure he couldn't keep escaping when he was supposed to be training.

Stoick passed by the foreign heir's house a second time before he noticed the dragon roaring and noise coming from the house, deciding that perhaps the young lass would know where his son was.

Dusk and Toothless bounded around the house, crashing into walls and knocking over various objects as they fled from the two teens. What started as a harmless prank to get back at the dragons for always interrupting them when talking, quickly turned into a chase throughout the house.

Hiccup doubled over, chest heaving as he tried to pull the air back into his lungs over chasing the dragons throughout the house, realizing that he really needed to get in better shape running wise. "Hey, Hiccup, don't break down on me already." Thorunn called up the stairs to him, flashing her now signature innocent smile at him when he glared playfully at her for the teasing.

"I'm sorry, I wasn't raised with dragons like you, little Thorunn." Hiccup called back, still trying to regain his breath but able to tease her none the less.

He immediately jumped back up though when he heard Thorunn hiccup his name, knowing that it drove him crazy when she poked fun at his name by hiccuping it.

Toothless quickly dashed for the front door when he realized that Hiccup instead chased after Thorunn, roaring to Dusk to let her know that now was their chance for escape.

Dusk dashed past Thorunn just before Hiccup tried to tackle her, blowing raspberries at the humans as Toothless burst through the front door, Dusk running after him as neither noticed how, upon busting open the door, they knocked the village chief back.

Stoick shook his head to regain himself, not having expected the two Night Fury's to almost trample him in an attempt to escape from their riders. Once he was sure he was fine, he went around the door, eyebrow raising at the sight he saw.

Thorunn squealed as she tried to get free, Hiccup having knocked her into a pile of furs she had piled in the living room and pinning her down once he had the chance. Face down in the furs, he sat on her legs and proceeded to hold her as she struggled in his playful grip, the boy laughing when she finally realized he had won. "You give up?" Hiccup asked finally as her body went limp against the furs.

"Cheater." Thorunn grumbled, smiling at the hearty laugh that burst from Hiccup at her comment before she felt his grip loosen on her, taking the chance and flipping their position, smiling victoriously down at Hiccup when he was left sprawled on his back with her sitting on his legs, his arms pinned by the wrist above his head.

"How did..." Hiccup trailed off upon realizing they weren't alone, the old chief's throat clearing being their sign that he could see everything they were doing.

Normally, Stoick would be mad with his son. Shirking training for becoming the next chief of Berk, running off and not telling him where he was going or when he'd be back, letting his dragon almost trample him.

But, upon seeing the two teens actions, and being wiser than both and noticing that it just could be more than playfulness, he couldn't actually be mad at his son.

Even if he was supposed to be home hours ago and never even so much as sent someone to tell him he was with this nice young lass.

"Mind explaining what's going on to me here son? Or why your dragons almost trampled me?" Stoick asked, chest puffing out as he watched Hiccup scramble to his feet, smile forming beneath his beard at how he obviously didn't want to be seen cavorting with this pretty little lass.

"We...we were just playing a game with the dragons when they ran off." Hiccup tried to explain as Thorunn looked between the two men, expecting Stoick to be more mad since she knew Hiccup had blown off his training to come spend some time with her today.

But instead, the hint of a smile graced the burly chief's lips beneath his beard. His eyes, which would be hard and full of anger, were instead full of amusement. It's like he was happier to see Hiccup here than training to be the next chief.

Well, she couldn't disagree with that idea. She was glad she didn't have to be chief of the Murderous tribe anymore since she left.

Hiccup continued trying to explain the reason why he was here instead of back in the Great Hall where his lessons were being given, while Thorunn instead dawned a devious smirk upon realizing that he left his guard down.

Never leave your guard down around a girl raised with mischievous dragons.

While still trying to explain to Stoick his reason for skipping his training, Hiccup didn't notice as Thorunn slowly crept up behind him. Thorunn slowly pulled the leather belt he had that kept his pants up off of his person, before giving a tug and fleeing towards her room in the back of the house when the brown fabric fell.

Hiccup let out a yelp when his pants fell to the floor, turning back to see Thorunn stick her head out of the bedroom doorway with her tongue stuck out at him as he realized she managed to, once again, get the upper hand over him.

Stoick's boisterous laughter finally drug him out of his stare down with Thorunn as he dropped down to grab his pants and pull them back up, face flushing red since he was just standing their in his skivvies, glad that Thorunn at least left him with those.

"Nice red skivvies, Hiccup." Thorunn called from her room as he felt his face heat up even further, holding his pants up as he tried to figure out where Thorunn had put his belt.

"She took your belt, son." Stoick advised through his laughter as Hiccup groaned, turning to go get his belt so he could leave, since knowing his father he was either going to take him to training, or take him home to lecture about not taking responsibility of his training to become chief.

Thorunn was still laughing as he appeared in her doorway, laid on her back on her bed with Zu trying to sleep on the other side of the room, but upon seeing the obviously embarrassed male, he himself let out a chortle at the sight. "Didn't know you liked them red, Hiccup. I'd have expected you to be more...plain." Thorunn continued to tease as he spotted his belt draped over her shoulders as she continued laughing.

Hiccup glared at her for the prank before strolling over towards where she was sprawled, set on getting his belt back from the prankster as she just continued laughing at him.

Zu rolled his eyes upon seeing Hiccup try to take his belt back from Thorunn. Obviously, he's forgotten who's raised the girl. He spent the last eight years training with her, so he knows she'll keep it if she wants. She's much faster than any other viking.

Letting out an exasperated sigh as he realized Thorunn was just going to keep his belt from him, Hiccup finally lunged forward, pinning her on her back on the bed as her eyes widened in surprise at his bold move, seeing the cocky smirk form on Hiccup's lips as he hovered above her, one hand holding her hands above her head while the other searched for the belt she had managed to hide on her person in the matter of seconds.

"Where is it, Thorunn?" Hiccup asked as her expression switched from shocked to devious once more, sticking her tongue out at him in response. "You know, I've seen you in less than you just saw me, so I'm not afraid to search." Hiccup said before he realized how his words actually sounded, trying to control his thoughts over their situation before he realized the position they were both in.

Thorunn was pinned underneath his much heavier viking body, arms above her head and vest falling beside her body as Hiccup's eyes trailed down to the white marks that came up out of her white tunic. Before even realizing what he was doing, his fingertips were brushing over the marks, not even noticing as the struggling girl went limp against his touch at what he was doing.

Hiccup's eyes returned to Thorunn's now troubled eyes, a small frown forming on his own lips before he heard his father clear his throat, looking over to see him standing in the doorway. "It's not proper to hold a young lass down, Hiccup." Stoick reminded as Hiccup quickly jumped off of the girl, remembering to hold up his pants though once he was up.

"She still has my belt. I wasn't going to hurt her, just get my belt back." Hiccup explained as Thorunn sat up, pulling his belt out from under her body as she tossed it to him, troubled look still evident on her face as Stoick knitted his eyebrows together in confusion as to what he just walked in on.

"I'll be waiting back at the house for you, Hiccup. Don't think about running off with some other lass this time." Stoick said before turning to leave, realizing he either interrupted his son trying to woo this lass, or a sensitive matter that the lass didn't want to discuss with just anyone.

Hiccup was surprised at first that his father was so willing to leave, before turning back to Thorunn, wanting an explanation for the scars finally as he sat down next to her on the bed, watching her eyes fall to the floor. "Mind telling me now what happened?" Hiccup asked quietly as he nodded towards the scars on her chest.

Thorunn looked up at him, almost pleading not to have to talk about it, but upon seeing the worried look he held for something that was eight years ago, she decided he deserved to know. "Promise not to tell anyone?" Thorunn asked as Hiccup placed a comforting hand on her own, getting bolder by the moment with her since with each passing day that he spent time with her, he felt more and more comfortable with her.

He just wished she could say the same.

"I won't tell anyone unless you ask me to." Hiccup advised as his eyes locked with hers, trying to convey that she could trust him with anything she had to tell him. Thorunn let out a sigh before pulling her hand from his, having him think for a second she was going to try to avoid it, but instead his eyes widened when she pulled her vest and tunic off, the male trying not to stare at her wraps that barely seemed to cover her chest.

"It happened when I was eight." Thorunn murmured quietly as her fingers trailed over the raised white marks on her skin, eyes shut as she tried to just relay the story and not feel the pain that was induced when she received the injury initially.

Hiccup noticed the pained look that dawned on her face as she spoke, reaching one hand over taking her own free hand to try to ensure she could keep calm, since obviously this was something she really didn't want to discuss.

"You...you're lucky...you know that?" Her voice was trembling now, fearful even as Hiccup quickly scooted over, releasing her hand and instead snaking his arm around her waist to try to calm the poor girl. "You never had someone send a dragon to try to kill you." Her next words made his blood feel like it was on ice, her face burying in his shoulder as he felt her body try to tremble, but she was fighting to keep calm.

Zu interrupted them, having noticed his distressed rider and rushing over to ensure she was okay. When he noticed what was the cause of her anxieties, his eyes narrowed at the scars that her free hand was still placed over. He remembered that horrid day every time he watched the girl dress in the morning. He knew, even though Dusk was with them now, it still provided plenty of stress and anxiety to the poor runaway.

"Who sent Dusk to kill you, Thorunn?" Hiccup asked quietly after he was sure that Thorunn was calm enough to continue.

Thorunn's face scrunched up against Hiccup's shoulder as she was forced to remember one of the worst days of her life.

"My father." Thorunn's voice was quiet, almost childlike as she spoke those two horrible words.

**Eight Years Earlier, Gunnar Island**

"Zu, I need you to run. Can you do that for me?" The Boneknapper looked down at the young girl, part of his mind telling him to listen, while the other told him to stay and help her.

The Boneknapper wasn't but ten years of age himself, but his mind was far more mature than this little hatchling's. He knew from the yelling and screams of agony approaching that there was something bad coming their way.

"Zu, if you don't go now, Dad might get you like he has Balder." Thorunn cried to the dragon as he flickered his gaze between her and the approaching light that was rushing through the trees towards them.

Zu looked down at Thorunn once more before turning to retreat, motioning to her to follow, but she held her ground as a thundering voice broke the air. "Thorunn!" The voice that barely escaped the viking's throat, but heralded doom to whomever it was directed to.

Thorunn was frozen where she stood. Her father never spoke. Not to her, not to her mother who was gone now, not to her younger brother whom he had locked away even. Before she had a chance to even try to run, her father's body barreled through the brush, standing before her with an enraged look on his face as he looked around for the Boneknapper that was spotted with his offspring.

Furious gray eyes landed on the nine year old. She had never seen her father like this before. She looked down at the sword hung loose on his belt, fear rushing through her body as she knew he wasn't here to try to bring her back to the village.

"You've made a mockery of me for the last time. Give me the Boneknapper, Thorunn, or die where you stand." His deep rumbling voice reached her ears, but she was frozen in fear as to what her father was going to do to her.

He had made her his heir, as he had Gumboil tell her weeks earlier. She was his only family member left, he even let her train with the older kids to fight. He wouldn't kill her...would he?

Upon not moving a step, or making a sound, Madguts raised a fist, making the girl backtrack for a second. But all he did was snap his fingers.

Thorunn looked up at him in confusion, before watching as he stepped aside. Through the brush, the chief's men brought a black, roaring dragon that thrashed about in the chains the men had put around it to force it to do their bidding. She fell back against a tree when the dragon's golden eyes fell on her.

"For betraying the Murderous Tribe, hiding a Boneknapper dragon from Chief Madguts, and aiding the dragon in fleeing from Gunnar Island, a place designated to be used to capture and detain dragons, Thorunn Skull Splitter, you are given the Chief's wrath." Gumboil's voice declared as he stood beside her father, who just watched his offspring with pure hatred over her betrayal.

"For your ways against the tribe, you are to be put to death at the claws of a Night Fury." Gumboil's final words struck Thorunn's ears, making her push herself further into the tree as the Night Fury's angry eyes remained locked on her.

"Men, let the Night Fury slay this...Dragon loving waste of life." Gumboil finished before turning his back to the scene, Madguts keeping his furious gaze on his daughter so he could watch her die at the hands of the creatures that were supposed to be used for his wars, not for her play.

The men inched forward with the dragon, more moving through the bushes to surround the area in the case that the Night Fury attempted to escape after the child's death.

Thorunn was frozen as the Night Fury was brought feet from where she was now cowering against the tree. "You will stand as you die, traitor!" Thorunn was forced to her feet by one of the vikings, pushed back against the tree roughly once she was standing.

Thorunn felt her blood turn to ice as the men released the Night Fury's restraints, rushing back to avoid being attacked as all the vikings drew their swords.

All except for her father.

His hateful glare was still held on his daughter as the Night Fury inched closer to Thorunn, eyes still enraged with being captured, but fearful as well as she was pushed and prodded by the humans that normally tried to kill her, not capture her.

The Night Fury froze in front of Thorunn as she noticed the girl's fearful green eyes, expecting to be pushed or hit by this human. Instead, the little girl stretched a hand out in front of her towards the dragon, confusing it since the hand wasn't to harm her. It was almost as if the girl was trying to calm her, even in her terrified state.

Part of the Night Fury's mind told her to inch her nose into the girl's touch, partly seeing this girl for who she was. Though these men chained, starved and beat her, this one was different.

This girl wasn't a threat to dragons.

The Night Fury's nose was inches from Thorunn's when an impatient Madguts stepped forward, boot slamming down on the dragon's tail as it let out a cry of pain and anger, claws reaching forward for the first thing.

Unfortunately, the first thing was the little girl who's eyes widened in fear, seconds before the claws slashed across her chest, Thorunn letting out a cry of pain as her flesh was torn open by the dragon's accidental reaction to having her tail stomped on.

The Night Fury let out a furious roar, ready to attack whomsoever it was that stomped on her tail, when a louder, more furious roar cut through the air like a sword, a blast of flame rushing around the edges of the tree that Thorunn was fallen against, hands clasping her injury as blood rushed past her fingers.

Within seconds of the roar, the Night Fury was forced back by an enraged Boneknapper, spiky tail swishing around and sending various vikings flying as he used one leg to pull the down child to his back, letting out another enraged roar as he found the source of the innocent hatchling's injury.

The Night Fury may have never met the girl, not even the dragon, but it didn't take knowing someone to see that this dragon in front of her held a bond with the poor girl who was slowly bleeding out.

The Night Fury rounded on the Chief as he drew his sword, Gumboil letting out the order to capture both the dragons, but with a rush of fire and a flap of his large, bony wings, Zu was off into the sky.

Thorunn's body in tow.

Madguts let out a roar of anger, wanting to watch his offspring die at his feet. But his thoughts were broken when instead a tail slammed into him, knocking him into a nearby tree as the chains that once restrained her broke from her anger.

The Night Fury shot a plasma blast at the vikings once more, leaping over the attacking vikings before taking off into the air.

Golden eyes caught on the flash of white as Zu retreated with his fallen friend, deciding that if there was one thing to do then, it was to try to help the poor hatchling who she had accidentally injured.

The last sound that reached Thorunn's ear before they were gone was her father's furious roar, before finally her injuries reached her, vision blacking out as she tried to hold onto the Boneknapper beneath her.

**Present Day, Berk**

Hiccup held Thorunn's trembling body to him tightly as her words trailed off, her face buried in his shoulder still as he rubbed his hands across her back, trying everything to try to comfort the poor, battered girl who he would never had imagined had gone through so much in her short seventeen years of life.

Zu whimpered at the sight of his distressed friend, moving forward to nuzzle his snout against Thorunn, hating the sight of her being like this.

"I...I haven't seen...him since." Thorunn muttered as she pulled her face from Hiccup's shoulder, taking a few deep breaths to calm herself down. She was supposed to be stronger than this, she couldn't just break down because of one story about her past. "I went back though, just he never saw me steal that letter you sent for the Dragon Trainer." Thorunn said as she pulled out of Hiccup's grip, rubbing her hands over her face to regain herself.

Hiccup frowned as he realized what Thorunn was doing now. She was trying to go back to her tough, reclusive self that he really wished she would just give up on. "Thorunn..." Hiccup trailed off upon Thorunn pulling her tunic back over her body, glancing towards him as he tried to figure out what to say to her.

He never would have thought that a father could treat his family in such a way just because of dragons. Though, then again, his own father tried to disown him because of Toothless.

"I'm sorry." Hiccup murmured as Thorunn pulled her vest back on, looking from him to Zu as the dragon nuzzled his snout into her chest, eyes conveying to her that he was still here for her now like he was back when he rescued her all those years ago.

"Don't be. It's not like you had anything to do with it. Just be glad that you have the father you do, even if he tries to embarrass you at times." Thorunn said as her eyes fell from his own, the want to cuddle up with Zu and try to hide like she did after he got her medical help returning.

Instead, she felt warm, strong arms wrap around her and pull her to an equally warm body as Hiccup tried to be as gentle as possible while comforting her.

Hiccup expected her to try to pull out of his grip, run off saying she needed to take care of her dragons or do something to get away, but instead he felt her arms slip around his abdomen, face moving into the crook of his neck as he did the same, feeling a fluttering warmth start in his chest at how Thorunn was actually relaxing into his arms for the first time ever.

Zu looked at the teen in annoyance at first for how he put his hands on his trainer, but upon seeing Thorunn relax into his grip and actually slip her arms around his waist, Zu decided to leave the two alone. It was obvious even to him that this was a moment when they needed to be left alone.

For the first time since she was a child, Thorunn actually found comfort in someone's touch that wasn't a dragon. She knew Hiccup was the kind of guy to want to help, but until now she didn't know just how far he would go when he pulled her into his chest. It was expected earlier, since she was breaking down from having to relay her past to him.

But now he was doing it just because he felt sorry for how her younger life had gone.

Thorunn nuzzled her face into Hiccup's neck in the way Snotlout found necessary to always do, hoping that was appropriate since she wasn't too sure how to show thanks or affection with other people. Sometimes, she realized it probably wasn't her best idea to grow up with a dragon.

But, then again, if she didn't she'd be dead right now.

Upon being pulled so close to Hiccup, she realized something more about him that she hadn't ever noticed before. Instead of smelling like mead and fire like Snotlout, he had a comforting scent of the forest and the sea, which was surprising to her since she rarely saw him near the water unless on Toothless's back.

The next thing she noticed was that his body seemed so warm, strong and inviting to her as he held her by close. It was almost as if he melded his body to fit her own as he held her. The final thing she noticed was the steady thumping inside of his chest, surprised that the beat was actually calming to her since she only found that comfort in the dragons.

The other thing she noticed, that confused her immensely, was that with each new realization about this man in front of her, she felt a warmth blossoming inside of her chest and a want to know more. It was uncomfortable at first, but as his arms remained around her she just relaxed more into his embrace.

Hiccup smiled as he felt Thorunn relax more into his body, leaning back against the headboard of her bed as she followed into his arms. Part of him knew he shouldn't still be holding her, it was just supposed to be an embrace to show her he was sorry for what happened to her, but now they were basically cuddled up in her bed, in the house alone since none of the dragons were home.

He knew he really shouldn't be like this with her either, since Snotlout was getting very leery about him being with her more and more, but at this point he really didn't care since as long as she was happy and not breaking down, he was happy.

Finally, the two parted slowly as Hiccup looked down at her, seeing the way she was reluctant to pull from his grip and smiling slightly since she was finally beginning to trust him a bit more, or at least enough to let him comfort her when something was wrong.

"I...I'm sorry." Thorunn muttered as Hiccup raised an eyebrow at her for apologizing to him for some reason.

"What reason do you have to be sorry?" Hiccup asked quietly as he tried to catch Thorunn's eyes that were cast down at the bed, obviously nervous about their situation.

"I'm not really used to being around other people. Eight years with Dragons, I just really don't know how to thank you for helping me today." Thorunn revealed as Hiccup dawned a smile at her innocent, wondering how she even put up with Snotlout since, being Snotlout, he always had to be brash and try to do things that she probably didn't even know about.

Thorunn was confused when Hiccup chuckled at her words, figuring she said something wrong or did something wrong, but instead he leaned forward, arm going around her waist once more. "Well, a good way to thank someone is with a hug. I'd hope you know what a hug is." Hiccup teased, laughing more when Thorunn swatted him on the shoulder.

"I'm not that inexperienced, Hiccup." Thorunn reminded as Hiccup continued laughing at her, not noticing as a devious smile returned to Thorunn's lips as she remembered one good thing that came from being around Snotlout a lot.

Hiccup was beginning to get his laughter under control when he felt a hand tug at his belt, looking down to see Thorunn had a firm grip on the leather that held his pants up. "That's not going to work a second..." Hiccup trailed off upon seeing Thorunn's hand move past his belt, fingertips reaching the sensitive skin of his abdomen as his tunic had ridden up.

"I'm sorry, what?" Thorunn asked innocently, eyes innocent as she kept her features from revealing that, even if she didn't handle humans as much as dragons, Snotlout had taught her how to drive any guy, be he interested in her or not, crazy. Her fingertips spread across his stomach, warm palm touching his skin as Hiccup tried to read her face to see if she was doing this on purpose or not.

Unfortunately, the poor teen could only see innocence in her glowing green eyes. He could feel heat rushing to his face as Thorunn's warm, gentle hand found its way into the trail of hair he had down their, surprised when she stopped for a second, looking up at him before removing her hand from his skin. "Wha..." Hiccup couldn't find his voice, his mouth had gone dry the moment her fingertips entered the hair trail he had hidden below his belt.

"I'm not as inexperienced as you think, Hiccup." Thorunn mused, devious look back in her eyes as Hiccup finally realized that this was all a ploy for her to torture him. "Snotlout showed me that one, he was playing with my hand one day and I went to pull away and instead found that little trick." Thorunn advised as she held her devious look on the tortured teen, laughing when he jumped up and off the bed to get away from the evil woman.

"You're evil! You never do that to a man, Thorunn!" Hiccup protested as the girl fell onto her back on the bed, laughing so hard that she was almost in tears. His thoughts that had taken a bad turn when her hand touched his skin now focused on how to get back at the girl.

"Why not? Because you can't do anything to get me back since you're supposed to be a gentleman?" Thorunn asked teasingly as she propped herself up to watch Hiccup's reaction, laughing more when he just continued to glare at her for the stunt.

"A gentleman? Don't know who you're talking about." Hiccup replied, arms folded over his chest before frowning more as Thorunn just continued laughing harder. He was about to reply, when he felt a heavy force shove him from behind, not getting a chance to yelp even as he was thrown on top of Thorunn.

"Agh, get off you're heavy!" Thorunn protested as she tried to get the man off, freezing when his head rose and their eyes met, feeling a nervous burst in her stomach as she stopped struggling beneath him.

Hiccup groaned before looking back, glaring at his dragon who just sat up on his hind legs with an innocent smile on his maw. "Toothless." Hiccup growled, moving to get up only to feel a tug on his belt, looking back down to see Thorunn's hand had him caught by the leather.

"Using your dragon to help you try to get revenge now, huh? Really would have expected better from you, Hiccup." Thorunn mused, teasing smile small though due to the nervous flutter in her stomach over their position.

Hiccup rolled his eyes at Thorunn's need to tease him, propping himself up above her since, while he didn't exactly want to be on her like this, he knew he could keep her from fleeing easier like this. "Toothless did it by himself, I didn't tell him to shove me." Hiccup reminded before taking her hand that was wrapped around his belt and removing it, rolling off of her once the connection was broke so he could stand up.

Thorunn watched Hiccup as he fixed his belt and stood up, partially feeling bad for teasing him before watching as he walked over to Toothless and swatted the prankster of a Night Fury on the arm.

"Next time you think it's funny to shove me around, remember I am the one who controls your tail and lets you fly." Hiccup reminded Toothless as the dragon rolled his eyes at the attempt of a threat, sticking his tongue out in response at the irritated teen.

"Hiccup..." Thorunn began only for him to walk out into the main room, Thorunn looking over at Toothless as he gave a confused look before following after his trainer, Thorunn following them out as well to see Hiccup grabbing the parchment with scribblings and invention ideas he had brought to show to Thorunn.

"I've got to go before my Dad comes to try to drag me back to the Great Hall himself." Hiccup said as Thorunn walked up behind him, frown crossing her face as her thoughts went to how he was obviously agitated.

Hiccup finally managed to collect all his things when he felt Thorunn's hand grab the back of his belt, trying to control the annoyance over the teasing that bubbled up, but instead he felt her fingers work around to the front of his belt as she came to stand in front of him. He was about to protest about her actions, but his face immediately lit up red when she leaned up and pressed a gentle kiss to his stubbly jaw line.

"Thank you, for today." Thorunn muttered quietly, eyes meeting Hiccup's and smiling before turning to let him go back to his training.

* * *

**Now, I promised that you would all find out how she received those scars. I bet you weren't expecting that it would have been by her father though, since a normal father would never hurt their child.**

**I know my own still pampers me and treats me like a daddy's girl, even though I'm in college.**

**Now, on to something more important. I've come to the point where I've began to wonder about changing the story's name or not. Unfortunately, I'm not the best at picking names. Good writer, not good name picker. Can't be good at anything. Anyways, I'd like to ask you, the readers, for ideas since this is all for you more than for me. Whoever has the best, I'll credit you in the decision and use it for the story. Just let me know your ideas in the reviews, and I'll see about changing it.**

**Anyways, I hope you enjoyed this exciting new chapter, I can without a doubt promise you that the chapters to come will just as well keep you on the edge of your seat. Hope you give me some new name ideas, and enjoy the chapters to come.**


	13. Pressure

**Greetings once again readers! I'd first like to begin today by thanking the one person who's been reviewing. I do read all my reviews while I'm writing just to make sure no one has any requests or anything. Also, in response to your question, TGirl15. I have seen all the trailers for the new How To Train Your Dragon 2 movie, that's where I was getting Hiccup's description from since I have the wiki up as I work for reference, I just wish I knew how to draw better so I could draw the characters out to show. I'm going to see the midnight premier as well, too excited to wait any later I guess.**

**Anyways, enjoy the chapter and always remember to review.**

* * *

Hiccup frowned as he sat with Toothless on the front steps of the Great Hall. Inside, he could hear Snotlout's yelling continue. His fist clenched in knowing who it was that he was yelling at.

Thorunn had told Snotlout, upon his attempts to take their relationship further, that she didn't want to be with him any further. That was about the point when Snotlout roughly shoved Hiccup out of the building to talk with Thorunn alone.

"...because of that hiccup out there?!" Hiccup kicked over the mug that was on the steps beside him upon hearing Snotlout assume that she was doing this because of him.

Gods knows, she's not into him anymore than she's into the brute.

Though every once in a while the stray thought creeps into his mind that he wishes she were.

Especially when they went out on their little midnight outing last night with Toothless and Dusk and ended up snuggling down beside a camp fire and telling stories till they were so tired they couldn't keep their eyes open any longer.

That was part of the reason why Snotlout was so pissed to, when they didn't come back to the village after the hour they said they would be gone. Instead they came back the next morning.

"...sleeping with the damn screw up?!" Hiccup picked up the mug he kicked over and this time threw it, looking down as it shattered on the nearest building.

Toothless whimpered, not liking seeing Hiccup this angry. He never got this angry when it came to his cousin normally. But...now he had a girl to worry about too. He could understand his anger, but that didn't mean he liked watching it.

Toothless was about to try to pull Hiccup away from the scene, but instead the door to the Great Hall opening distracted both of them as Thorunn emerged, stomping out of the building as she tried to escape from Snotlout, only for him to follow out instead. "We're not done talking!" Snotlout boomed furiously as Thorunn stomped down the steps past Hiccup and Toothless.

"I'm pretty sure we are!" Thorunn snapped back before letting out a shrill whistle. Snotlout was ready to say something else, but at that moment Dusk landed with a soft thud behind Thorunn, warning glare on the teen to back down now.

"Fine, go hide behind Toothless's girlfriend then. Thor knows you're already banging the screw up here." Snotlout snapped, attempting to throw his mug of mead at Hiccup but failing as he stumbled, obviously having had too much already.

Hiccup stood up at the comment, temper finally worn past trying to talk things out. Before he could do anything Dusk took off into the sky, carrying Thorunn off with her as she shot a plasma blast at Snotlout's feet, knocking the drunken viking back onto his rear on the concrete.

Toothless whimpered, not knowing whether to stay peaceful or not when Hiccup grabbed his cousin by the collar of his tunic, pulling an arm back to finally break his cousin's nose. He was inches from doing it as well, when a much larger hand caught his elbow, halting him.

Hiccup looked back to see his father's disapproving eyes, the chief having been called when word spread that a drunken nephew of his was picking a fight with his son's pretty little dame. "Hiccup, go. This isn't a time for violence." Stoick reminded the chief in training as he released the teen's arm.

"But...we're vikings! There's always a time for violence from what you used to say!" Hiccup protested, whirling on his drunken cousin who was now struggling against his one hand, before Stoick forced them apart.

"Not this time. Not with family. Now go." Stoick ordered, burly hand shoving his son towards Toothless before taking placing the same hand on his drunken nephew's shoulder, leading him back into the Great Hall for a talk about how to treat women.

Hiccup groaned before turning to Toothless, the dragon already ready to take off after the two women that had left in a huff.

Gobber stood back as he watched the young lass work angrily in his workshop, never having seen her while this worked up before. Outside the window, Dusk was keeping watch. They had flown around for a few minutes before landing at the blacksmith so Thorunn could put her anger to good use.

"Ya sure ya wanna be working, lass?" Gobber asked once more as Thorunn took the metal spokes she had been forming and dunked them in the water barrel, the water hissing calming her a bit before she dropped the finished metal on the workbench.

"I'm fine, Gobber. Just make sure that bastard Snotlout stays away." Thorunn growled before turning her full attention back to her work.

Gobber scratched the back of his neck, wondering if he should listen and let her continue, or retrieve the young lad who he knew could calm her in a second.

Sometimes he wondered why Thorunn had picked Snotlout over his apprentice in the first place. Gods knows, he's definitely not the smarter of the two.

In fact, only good thing on him is his muscles for fighting.

Gobber watched as Thorunn pulled her riding vest off and began to attach the spoke onto it, having decided to switch from leather bindings to keep the wings in place upon having the bindings break once again when she got them caught on a rock while flying with Dusk.

"Ya sure that won't weigh ya down?" Gobber asked as he watched over the girls shoulder as she attached the spoke to her vest.

"It's not as heavy as the flaps. Hiccup and I were discussing it for a while, he agrees it should work fine to have to on each side of the vest to keep the wings attached." Thorunn advised as Gobber dawned a smile at how the boy was actually willingly working on a project with someone for once.

Ah, he was going to give the boy some mead and have a nice long talk about how to woo the lass, that was for sure.

As if they knew he was talking about him, Toothless landed outside, Hiccup jumping off to make sure Thorunn was alright as Toothless trotted up to Dusk, the female nuzzling his chin as he approached.

Toothless let out a content sigh when he felt Dusk purr against his scales, tail sliding around her as he opened a wing to hide them from the now gawking villagers.

Even when their trainers were battling it out with themselves or others, at least the two Night Fury's could find comfort in one another.

Thorunn dunked the blazing metal in the water barrel as Hiccup walked in, Gobber motioning him towards where Thorunn was working. "Thorunn." Hiccup called to her instead, the girl not turning towards him though since she knew he was here from the moment Toothless landed.

"I'm fine, stop worrying about me." Thorunn said simply as she dropped the finished spoke onto the workbench, moving to grab more leather as she stepped around Gobber to head to the back room.

Gobber raised an eyebrow at Hiccup, knowing smile held on his lips as he watched the boy's eyes follow Thorunn about until she was out of the room. He looked up finally to see the old blacksmith's smile. "What?" Hiccup asked, only for Gobber's smile to double.

"Why don't ya talk with her?" Gobber asked, eyes flickering towards where Thorunn had disappeared.

Hiccup raised an eyebrow at the blacksmith. "I talk with her everyday Gobber. Been getting some of the good Mead?" Hiccup asked teasingly as he swatted the husky viking on his belly, smiling at the glare he got for doing so.

"I mean, go talk to her on a more _personal_ side." Gobber advised, frowning when Hiccup just continued to look at him like he was crazy. "You idiot boy, go woo her for Thor's sake!" Gobber snapped, swatting Hiccup on the side of the head for knowing nothing about women.

Hiccup groaned as he rubbed his head before realizing what Gobber was saying, face flushing for a second. "No, no I can't. She...we're just friends." Hiccup reminded as he heard Thorunn rummaging around in the back, covering Gobber's mouth when she came back to ensure the man didn't say something to embarrass him.

Thorunn looked over at the two men to see Hiccup covering Gobber's mouth, raising an eyebrow at them for the sight before going back over to the workbench to finish her vest.

Once her back was to them once more, Hiccup released the crazed blacksmith, glaring at him warningly to try to silently convey to him to keep quiet.

Gobber instead stuck his hook out towards the girl in the room, making a few gestures on what to do as Hiccup felt like it was his father's and now this man's job to embarrass him as much as possible.

"You know I can tell you're speaking silently behind me, right?" Thorunn's voice broke the men from their silent discussion as she continued attaching the spoke to the wing.

"Uh...we're just discussing..." Hiccup cut short with a yowl of pain as Gobber stomped down on his foot, causing him to stumble forward and crash over onto the empty workbench on the other side of the room.

"Ah, poor lad. Thorunn, be a sweet young lass and help the boy, would ya? I need to go get some more leather strips cut up for ya." Gobber advised, winking towards the now angry teen before fleeing the scene to give them some time to themselves.

"You okay?" Thorunn asked as she moved over to help Hiccup up, taking notice of how he was obviously annoyed with the blacksmith.

"I'm fine, just going to shove my metal foot up Gobber's..." Hiccup cut short upon Thorunn taking hold of his belt, mouth going dry as he wondered if she knew what Gobber was trying to get them to do, before instead she pulled him to his feet.

"You know, that thing does much more than just keep your pants up. I've used your belt at least five times now to get you up." Thorunn advised as she turned to go back to attaching the metal spoke to her vest.

"Well when you nearly grab a man's crotch, yeah it's gonna get him up." Hiccup said before he noticed what he was actually saying, face going red as Thorunn looked towards him for the snippy comment, chuckling as he fled into the back room. She rolled her eyes when she heard a steady thump seconds later, hoping he wasn't injuring himself.

Hiccup banged his head against the wall over and over, wondering why he had to be such a hiccup at times. Why couldn't he just say something right to her for once? Or at least not appear like a total screw up. "What are ya doing?" Hiccup yelped, whirling around to see Gobber standing outside the window, apple speared onto his hook as he took a bite.

"Why do you and Dad both have to do that?!" Hiccup snapped, running his hands through his now messy hair.

"It gets ya blood flowing away from ya skivvies, so it's a good thing." Hiccup proceeded to bang his head against the wall after Gobber's words for how the man had to be at times. "Ya know, that can't be good for ya. Use a helmet." Gobber mused, reaching into the window to grab a nearby helmet and toss it to him.

Hiccup swatted the helmet as it was tossed towards him, glaring at the man who obviously has just been spying through the windows to see if he would willingly try to "woo" Thorunn. "Will you just give up on all of this and let me live my life peacefully?" Hiccup asked, still obviously annoyed but more so pleading now just to get away from the idea of embarrassing himself around Thorunn.

"Nope." Gobber said before taking another bite from his apple, smirking as Hiccup hit his head against the wall once more for how he would never let him live happily.

"Why? Why can't you let me be happy?" Hiccup asked before Gobber pushed the window open fully, clambering into the little room to talk to the boy a bit better, and maybe give him a shove into something again so Thorunn would have reason to come speak to him.

"Because you'd be much happier with a pretty little dame hanging on your arm, or in your case wing Dragon Boy." Gobber said, clamping his hand down on the teen's shoulder as he tried to give his best pleading eyes to escape.

Unfortunately, Gobber just smirked at him in response before shoving him back out into the main room where Thorunn was putting the finishing touches on her vest's improvement. "Ask her to go for a walk, or in your case fly I guess." Gobber whispered to Hiccup before turning back around to retreat.

Hiccup's shoulders sank upon realizing he wasn't going to get away easily, only feeling slightly better when he heard Gobber clambering out of the window and instead falling over due to his inability to move about smoother.

Thorunn looked up upon realizing that Hiccup was back, small smile forming as she figured he was going to do something klutzy again or say something he obviously didn't mean to. "Thought you climbed out the window and ran away." Thorunn mused as Hiccup walked over to look at her improved vest.

"No, that was Gobber. He fell over." Hiccup advised, smiling when Thorunn chuckled at the news.

"For a viking, he really doesn't know how to maneuver his body very well." Thorunn commented as Hiccup silently thanked the gods that things weren't taking a turn for the worse yet.

"Well, he is old and drinks a lot." Hiccup commented, looking towards the window that looked out onto the street to see a not so amused blacksmith glaring warningly at him.

"Good point. Something you need before I go find Dusk?" Thorunn asked as she pulled her vest back on, looking forward to seeing how the use of metal spokes to keep the wings attached would work out for flying.

Hiccup opened his mouth, ready to tell her that she could go find Dusk, but instead he looked towards the window to see Gobber raising his hook warningly to the teen, knowing he could do a lot worse if he didn't at least try something.

Hiccup let out a sigh as he realized he wasn't getting away without some mental scarring.

Gobber folded his arms over his chest as he waited, frowning when the other teens showed up, looking in to see the two inventors in the building. "What's Hiccup doing? Trying to steal Snotlout's girl now?" Tuffnut asked, snorting at his joke since Hiccup already lost Astrid.

Hiccup shrunk a bit more upon hearing his friends outside. Now Gobber had a full armory to use against him if he didn't do something. Deciding to at least try, he thought about some of the lines that he heard Snotlout and Tuffnut say to some of the local girls before turning back to Thorunn as she was strapping on her vest. "Hey, have you been to the...doctor lately?" Hiccup asked nervously, hands fiddling with his belt in his nervousness as the crowd outside the window had four dragons join them.

"Uh...no why? I'm not injured and not noticing, am I?" Thorunn asked as she looked down at her hands and arms to make sure she didn't burn herself and not notice again. Fire was something she rarely felt at this point in living with fire breathing dragons for so long.

"Uh...no. I just think you might be lacking some Vitamin Me." Hiccup tried to sound as suave and calm as possible, but he heard his voice tremble a bit at the last word, cringing when he heard Tuffnut and Ruffnut erupt in laughter outside.

Fishlegs cringed for his friend, knowing he really thought highly about Thorunn and didn't want to do anything stupid in front of her. He had a hunch when they saw Gobber watching from the window that something was up. And now they knew what. The crazed blacksmith was torturing their friend once more.

"Vitamin Me? I don't think I've ever heard of that. Are you sure you're not the one injured?" Thorunn asked as she watched Hiccup fiddle nervously with his belt, since he had nothing else to try to distract himself from the nervousness and embarrassment wracking him.

"Uh...I'm fine. Gothi just says I'm lacking Vitamin U." Hiccup continued, wanting to go crawl under a rock upon hearing the two twins outside fall further into hysterics. Now even the dragons and Gobber were laughing at the embarrassing display.

Right now, Hiccup was seriously just considering going out there and punching Tuffnut in the nose for ever thinking these things worked to say to a girl.

"Alright, I think you need to go home and get some sleep, Hiccup. Obviously you are either sleep deprived, or Gobber hit you a bit too hard." Thorunn advised as she began to lead Hiccup towards the door, just then noticing the laughter outside.

Once he was out the door, he didn't even seem to notice Thorunn was walking outside as he dashed for Gobber, trying to grab the man by the neck but he side stepped the teen, letting him attack Tuffnut instead. Either way, it was a win win since this was one of the men who gave the idea for what he said inside.

"Agh, get him off me! He's gone crazy! He doesn't even know how to pick up chicks right!" Tuffnut yelled as he tried to get away from the angry Dragon Trainer, only for him to grab him by the tunic and drag him right back for punishment. "You were supposed to pop your hips towards her when you said the first one! Gah get him off!" Tuffnut yelled before Hiccup remembered Thorunn might be able to here him.

Looking back he saw Thorunn standing beside Dusk, confused as to what was going on. "What in gods name are you talking about?" Thorunn asked, Hiccup letting out a sigh at how she obviously had no knowledge about flirting or any romance things.

Tuffnut opened his mouth to reveal Hiccup's actions, but instead Hiccup hit him over the head, dazing the blonde man as he went limp on the ground, groaning.

"Well, I'm going to go flying before someone tries to attack me. I mean, with the way you reacted to me earlier with the belt thing Hiccup, I'd assume you might come for me next." Thorunn teased, smirking at him when Gobber burst into laughter before she jumped up onto Dusk's back.

Hiccup finally released Tuffnut once Thorunn was up in the air, whirling now on the Blacksmith who just smiled innocently at the teen even if it was by his hands that he was forced to try to woo the pretty little dragon trainer.

"All men are weird, Dusk. I bet you are just as glad as I that we don't have to be married away or traded off like the rest of the vikings." Thorunn commented as she sat opposite her dragon, the two having landed on a ledge on the mountain after their test run of the flying vest.

Dusk began to grumble her agreement, but it was about then that a familiar roar echoed towards them from the village. Dusk, instead of agreeing that all men were weird and they should stay as they were, let out a low purr as Thorunn cocked an eyebrow at the behavior before recognizing the roar.

"That's Toothless. Dusk...you have a boyfriend, don't you?" Thorunn asked, knowing smile evident on her face as she watched the dragon for her reaction, smile growing when her golden eyes widened in shock at her assumption.

Dusk shook her head quickly, since even if Toothless was a charming, handsome Night Fury, they weren't together. They haven't even done the ritual of acceptance for a mate, so it should be obvious they're still just friends.

Thorunn wasn't convinced though, as her smile held firm on her lips. "Well, if you're not his mate, then why not? He's a fast, strong, handsome Night Fury. Wouldn't you say?" Thorunn asked, smile growing when Dusk proceeded to drop her face onto the ground and cover it with her claws to try to hide from the teen.

Dusk wouldn't mind being with the male. Truthfully, she's had her eye on him since about a week after Pythius introduced them. But...it was a matter of him actually wanting her.

Dusk hadn't seen another Night Fury in a long time, and neither had Toothless from what he told her, but that didn't mean he would actually want her. She also had some reserves about that tail of his, since with it like it is, he can't fly alone anymore.

But, he's fiercely protective of his human and his fellow dragons. Yes, she could get used to the idea of being his mate, she was already used to him poking fun at her by nuzzling her or wrapping his wing around both of them to hide them from the villagers.

Now the only matter was if he was actually looking for a mate.

Thorunn relented on the Night Fury finally before her thoughts went back to Hiccup's odd behavior in the blacksmith earlier, wondering what had gotten into him.

She was used to Hiccup's odd behaviors by now. It was part of what made him interesting. But, today he was exceedingly odd, since the comments about the doctor made her suspect he was either drinking the Mead again, or he was suffering from heat stroke.

Sometimes, she really didn't understand humans. Especially men.

"Come on Dusk, it's starting to get dark now. Let's go back to get you some fish." Thorunn offered, the dragon immediately perking up at the offering of food as Thorunn stepped up to the edge of the ledge.

Dusk stepped up to take Thorunn up onto her saddle, before crying out in shock when instead the teen leaped from the ledge with an excited whoop.

Dusk took off after Thorunn as she shot down the side of the mountain, wings spread on her wingsuit as Dusk shot down to keep by her side in case the wingsuit broke again.

Thor knows, last time it did she barely caught the girl before she hit the ground.

Fortunately, this time her wingsuit was keeping better due to the metal spokes keeping the wings together better. Thorunn got just into the treeline when Dusk caught her, pulling the teen onto her saddle to ensure she didn't injure herself again.

"Well, I think this design works, so we'll have to let Hiccup know." Thorunn advised Dusk as they flew towards the village, silent until they reached the house. "Alright, I owe you some fresh Cod, so come on let's go pick it up." Thorunn offered, Dusk letting out a cry of joy before bounding after Thorunn towards the market where the barrel was waiting.

While the two girls were walking around town, Toothless stood perched on the Great Hall, eyes following them as he prepared to pounce on Dusk. The female thought him not as sly, mainly because he couldn't fly alone, but he could prove her wrong.

Toothless was getting ready to pounce, when suddenly the Great Hall door slammed, Hiccup looking up at his dragon who was perched ready to pounce. "I hope you weren't going to pounce on me." Hiccup called up to Toothless, breaking the dragon from it's thoughts as he looked down at the man on the ground.

Toothless shook his head to answer before turning back to pounce on Dusk. Unfortunately, she was gone. Toothless cocked his head to the side in confusion, since she was there a second ago. He was about to jump down, when a snort that sent hot breath down his breath caused him to loose his thought, and balance, tumbling off the roof and into a pile of hay on the ground.

Hiccup sighed as he watched Toothless fall, Dusk jumping down next since, while he was going to jump on her, she didn't want to knock him off the roof. His dragon was starting to take after him now. Embarrassing himself in front of a pretty girl.

Hiccup turned away from the two smitten dragons to go back to his own house, only to be met with the familiar glowing green eyes that he kept being enchanted by. "Just like his rider now." Thorunn teased as she stood a few feet in front of Hiccup, nodding towards where Toothless was now crawling out of the pile of hay.

"Very funny, Thorunn." Hiccup muttered before stepping past her to go back to his own house, not wanting to make a bigger fool of himself today. He'd rather just go hide in his room.

"What's wrong? Gobber or your Dad picking on you again?" Thorunn asked as Hiccup began to walk towards his house, the way happening to be the same way as her own house.

"Nope, just gonna go home and get some sleep." Hiccup said, trying to sound convincing but the nervous flutter that rose with every step she took after him made it sound less convincing, as he really didn't want to make her think him crazy or sleep deprived.

"The sun just set. Last night alone you didn't go to bed until past midnight." Thorunn commented as the viking in front of her shrugged his shoulders at the notion, since they had slept out in the middle of the forest.

"Well, maybe that's the reason why I want to go to bed early tonight. Get some good sleep." Hiccup said as the dragons began to walk beside them now, the teen unaware of the disappointed frown on Thorunn's face at how he was obviously trying to avoid her if his body language meant anything.

He was speeding up every time she got near, eyes set anywhere she wasn't, and if she did get close he began nervously fiddling with his belt.

"Alright, fine. I was just going to ask if you wanted to come back to my house for a bit so we could discuss the flying suit, but I'll let you be." Thorunn muttered, turning to go back and get Dusk her fish as Hiccup finally looked back at her, smacking a hand to his forehead as he realized she sounded hurt by his attempts of trying to avoid further embarrassment.

"Stupid screw up!" Hiccup snapped to himself, shoulders slumping as Thorunn was gone, her dragon looking towards him before taking off after the teen.

Toothless was beyond confused now as to what was going on, glancing over at Hiccup and how he looked upset before deciding to try to play peacekeeper again.

Zu looked up when the front door banged open, Thorunn pushing in barrel's full of fish with Dusk's help as the older Boneknapper licked his lips at the sight, nudging Pythius with his tail to try to wake her.

Pythius grumbled before turning her head away, wanting to sleep.

"Alright guys, dinner's here." Thorunn advised, pushing two barrels in front of the Boneknappers before taking one of the two that Dusk had to go start preparing the fish in the kitchen, Dusk looking down at her own fish for a second before following Thorunn to try to comfort the obviously upset teen.

Dusk's eyes followed her hands as the girl gutted and cleaned the fish quickly, willing her to talk by throwing a fight from the barrel at her. Instead of talking, Thorunn just picked it up and threw it back silently before returning to trying to clean the food.

Dusk frowned, letting out a whimper as the two feasting Boneknappers finally looked up, not having noticed that the girl had something on her mind until then.

Thorunn put the cut up fish onto a pan and brought it over to the already blazing fire to cook, ignoring the worried stares of her dragons as she moved. "Guys, I'm fine. I just want to eat and go rest." Thorunn assured when they continued to stare.

Dusk just continued to watch her though, hoping that she would at least try something. It wasn't like Thorunn to be effected by humans, she knew this and she had only been with the girl for about two months now.

Thorunn sighed before sitting down next to the fire, pulling off her riding vest as she realized that the dragons wouldn't leave her be unless they knew she was okay.

Dusk's ears perked up upon hearing something outside, creeping over towards the window in time to see Toothless trying to sneak around outside, snorting at him to get his attention.

Toothless smiled upon seeing Dusk already knew he was there, trotting over and leaning up on his hind legs to give his plan to the girl. Hopefully it would work, and they wouldn't get punished for what they were about to do.

Dusk agreed immediately as Toothless grinned ear to ear at her over the plan, motioning to her to go lure Thorunn out as he prepared to go enrage his own rider enough to chase him.

Thorunn had started to finish cooking the fish when suddenly Dusk went wild, bounding and thrashing into everything in sight, knocking things over and even riling up the two Boneknappers who had no idea what was going on. "Dusk? Dusk calm down!" Thorunn yelled as she jumped up to try to calm the suddenly crazy female dragon.

Instead of doing what was asked, Dusk lunged forward, snatching the girl's flying vest in her teeth before barreling out the front door, a roar the last thing letting Thorunn know she had to take chase after the crazy Night Fury.

Zu and Pythius exchanged a confused look before deciding to just let Dusk do what she wanted, going back to eating their fish as Thorunn chased after the Night Fury.

Hiccup sat silently at his desk in his room, slowly sketching some things out on the parchment in front of him. He looked up when Toothless crawled in the window. His eyes locked with Toothless's for a moment, only getting a second to see the mischievous look in his green eyes before Toothless let out a roar, lunging forward as Hiccup yelped at the sudden behavior.

After the initial shock, Hiccup looked up to see Toothless tearing through his room, knocking over his desk, his inventions and papers going flying. "Toothless! Stop!" Hiccup demanded, but instead the dragon grabbed a drawing he had done after one of his more restless night's and took off out the window. "Toothless! Bring that back!" Hiccup yelled after the dragon before taking off after him, knowing if that drawing got into one of his friends hands he'd never here the end of it.

Toothless hit the ground running as Hiccup burst through the front door of the house, surprising the dragon since he normally didn't move that fast. Toothless winked at him before taking off running towards the forest, chortling as he heard Hiccup yelling after him.

Dusk shot through the forest, roaring and chortling every once in a while as the race continued. She would let Thorunn get close for a few seconds, only to dash off seconds later and leave the girl yelling at her to stop. This was actually a lot more fun than she thought it would initially be.

She just hoped that Toothless knew what he was doing, or already had everything set up for when they got to the cross point.

Fortunately, the two dragons barreled into the cove at the same time, humans falling in behind them as they stopped near the tree where they shared their first sweet moment.

Thorunn's eyes widened upon seeing a warm little fire with sleeping bags set around it near the tree, glancing over to see and equally surprised and confused Hiccup over what the dragons had done.

Now, it was just a matter of if the teens would listen to the dragon's ideas.

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**Sneaky little dragons, wouldn't you say? Personally, my favorite part was those embarrassing pick up lines. Never heard anyone use those kinds of lines before, personally. Anyways, I hope you all enjoyed as much as I did writing it for you.**

**Even though I've already got five more chapters already set up in the doc manager. I love being able to type about 120 words per minute.**

**Anyways, if you all would like to see these chapters sooner than on the one-a-day normal, just send me a review. I can definitely promise, next chapter is one of my favorite so far, but I can't give away what it's about. Just send a review, then I'll more than likely post it today as well.**

**Again, thanks for reading, and I hope some of you review so I know if you're as excited about this story as I am.**


	14. Night Flight

**Greetings once more readers! I told you, once we hit the 5 review mark I'd post an extra chapter. That, and I've written all the way up to chapter 19 by now, so I really wanted to see the reaction to this one. I'll leave the talk for after you're done reading. Enjoy, and next double will be at 10. Might even do it today if we hit 10 today.**

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Toothless smiled triumphantly at Dusk as she came over and sat beside him, dropping Thorunn's flying vest at their feet as Toothless dropped the drawing he had stolen from his own rider.

He didn't know when it started if Hiccup would actually follow him all the way to the cove. In fact, he expected him to just go back inside and lock him out as punishment for destroying the bedroom and stealing his drawing.

Instead, now the two teens were standing a few feet away confused beyond anything as to what the dragons had done.

"Did you plan this, or did they?" Thorunn asked finally, breaking the relative silence as she turned to Hiccup, who looked as confused as she.

"I had nothing to do with this. Toothless just trashed my room and ran off with one of my sketches." Hiccup defended, looking over at the male Night Fury as he realized he needed to go retrieve the sketch. As he got close to Toothless, the dragon dropped a paw onto the paper, effectively showing he wasn't going anywhere with it tonight.

Toothless smiled triumphantly once more, since while he may be a dragon and not understand humans perfectly, he knew how to bargain with them. Giving a nod towards the little set up, Hiccup glared at him before reluctantly sitting down.

Thorunn rolled her eyes, since being raised with dragons for eight years she understood better than Hiccup. "They'll give our stuff back after tonight. They want us to camp out here with them." Thorunn explained as Hiccup glared at the dragons for the trick.

"We camped out last night, so I don't see why we have to again." Hiccup complained as Thorunn rolled her eyes at him, taking a seat opposite him at the fire.

"You're a sheltered type, I see. This is nothing, try living out in the wilderness for eight years with nothing but a fire and a dragon behind you." Thorunn said as Dusk came over to curl up with her on the fur, tucking the vest under her body though to make sure Thorunn couldn't take it and run.

"Well, I just want to know why they had to get us out here like this." Hiccup muttered, his attitude actually beginning to agitate Thorunn now even as she turned to the dragons to try to read what their intentions were.

Dusk whimpered when Thorunn's eyes landed on her, knowing she could speak like humans but hoping she would understand what their plan was here. The two obviously had some tension between them due to earlier when they last spoke.

All the dragons wanted was for them to relax and spend some time together where no one else was bothering them.

As if understanding her dragon, Thorunn smiled at her as she scratched the girl under the chin, pressing her forehead to the dragon's as Dusk purred, glad she could understand dragons so easily.

"They were luring us out here so we could relax without your friends or Gobber bothering us." Thorunn explained, surprising Hiccup with how she understood without needing words from the Dragons.

It made him wish he was more like her with the dragons. At times, it was obvious she was more skilled than he now with the dragons.

Hiccup looked back at Toothless to see him nod towards Thorunn, trying to convey to the boy that now was his chance to make up for earlier when he had an attitude with her being around.

Hiccup watched as Thorunn leaned back against Dusk, comfortable with laying out on furs and only having the warm glow of the fire in front of them. She looked like she loved it out here, where as he was just nervous about the whole situation as usual.

Gods, he really was a hiccup.

Thorunn could tell that Hiccup wasn't too happy about the dragon's little set up, frowning since it was obvious he didn't want anything to do with her right now.

It earlier meant anything, he seemed more annoyed by her than the dragons.

"You know, if you don't want to be here you could easily go back." Thorunn spoke up, surprising all three by how up front she was since Dusk knew that Thorunn had a soft spot for the viking.

Hiccup frowned, knowing by her tone that Thorunn wasn't exactly happy right now. He watched as she stood up from her spot and walked over towards the water, back to him as a thick silence fell with the tension in the cove.

Dusk crept up to Thorunn as she sat down next to the water, eyes locked on the reflection of the moon in the water. She couldn't stand to see the girl upset like this, especially over a teen who she'd only known for about five months now.

Hiccup's shoulders slumped as he watched Thorunn hug Dusk, about to hit his head against the nearest object when instead an idea graced his mind. He turned to Toothless, who looked disappointed in him at first, but upon watching Hiccup try to climb up onto his saddle, he jumped back, not so willing to let him leave the girl like this.

"No, bud. We're all going to go for a moonlight flight. Not just you and I." Hiccup explained to the dragon, watching as a smile dawned on the dragon's maw at the idea since it was probably one of his better ideas.

Well, at least when it came to someone as important as the two girls on the other side of the cove.

Thorunn looked up from Dusk when she heard footsteps approaching them, looking over towards Hiccup for a second before back at Dusk as the Night Fury wrapped her wing around the young runaway to comfort her.

Hiccup held back the frown that he wanted to give off at the sight of her obviously annoyed with him before stepping up behind the two girls. "Thorunn." Hiccup spoke up as he crouched down behind the two, Toothless behind him.

Thorunn ignored him as Dusk wrapped her wing tighter around the girl, keeping her gaze on her friend instead of the irritating male.

"Toothless and I want to take you for a little moonlight flight, if you're up for it." Hiccup spoke again, voice quiet as he spoke in hopes that Thorunn would actually agree to the idea.

"Why would I ride with you on Toothless when I have Dusk?" Thorunn's snippy comment came next as Hiccup's shoulders slumped, about to just leave her be but instead, Toothless nudged him forward into the girls.

Thorunn looked up, not having expected to have a viking shoved into her, to see the sincerity now in the once annoyed teens eyes, unable to actually stay mad at him for his attitude when her eyes locked with his own.

"Please, Thorunn. It won't be that long." Hiccup murmured as their eyes remained locked, surprised by how he actually felt a bit more calm as he locked eyes with her. Something about those glowing green eyes just seemed to ensnare him.

Thorunn was about to protest, out of her own pride for her dragon, but Dusk pushed her towards Hiccup, smiling at the teen innocently at how she pushed her right into his chest, glad dragons didn't turn red when they were embarrassed.

After the initial surprise of being pushed into his chest, Thorunn gave a quick nod of agreement, small smile forming at the smile Hiccup gave her before Toothless stepped up to let the two up onto his saddle.

Hiccup couldn't help but remember who the last person was that rode with him at night three years ago, looking down at Toothless and giving a nod to him once Thorunn was safely seated behind him, Dusk stopping them from taking off though as she sat up on her hind legs in front of them, Thorunn's vest in her mouth as Hiccup reached out to take it.

Thorunn's hand met his mid air, both having reached to take the leather flight vest from Dusk. Hiccup felt a little spark for the first time as his hand grazed Thorunn's, pulling back in surprise as she snatched the vest from Dusk's mouth, pulling it on as she wondered what the little tingling was she felt when her hand grazed Hiccups.

"Alright, hang on then." Hiccup murmured before Toothless smiled up at them, taking off into the air swiftly as Dusk followed along for the flight.

Having nowhere to hold on to, Thorunn's arms wrapped around Hiccup's torso, surprising the boy since she rarely hugged him, let alone did this. He couldn't stop the smile that rose from their proximity as Toothless continued rising higher and higher, aiming for the clouds.

Toothless slowed as he reached the cloud line, evening out to soar beneath the clouds and let the two enjoy the puffy water collectors for a bit. Dusk evened out beside him, surprising the Night Fury since he thought that she would stay back and curl up by the fire. Dusk let out a chitter at the sight of the two on his back, and how Thorunn still had her arms around Hiccup.

Upon realizing that she was holding onto him, Thorunn quickly removed her arms, nervous once more even though she couldn't deny it was a bit more comfortable up here with something or someone to hold on to.

Hiccup looked back at Thorunn as she let go of him, only to watch her reach a hand up and swat at the cloud above then, laughing at how she looked so innocent when she did it. "You've seen clouds before, Thorunn." Hiccup reminded her as she looked back down at him.

"I know, I just like swatting at them since Pythius used to think they were food and try to take a bite out of them." Thorunn revealed, giggling at the memory as Hiccup smiled at how, up in the sky, she looked much happier than down on the ground.

Toothless looked up at the two for a brief moment before beginning to rise once more through the clouds to give them an even better sight.

Dusk followed, spinning around Toothless in a delicate flight that seemed to just come to her, almost instinct as the other Night Fury tried not to mimic her due to the two on his back. Unfortunate for him though, instinct was stronger as he began to spin around Dusk, surprising both of the teens as Thorunn latched onto Hiccup again in surprise.

"What are they doing?" Hiccup asked as he held on tight to the saddle to make sure they didn't both go flying off.

After the initial shock, Thorunn opened her eyes to check and see what the Night Fury's were doing. They began to fly in an ascending circle, eyes locked as they rose through the clouds swiftly, only feet apart as Dusk gave a low purr to the male holding the vikings.

Thorunn's eyes widened, having seen this once before on an island she had visited with Zu where dragons came to mate. "It's...it's a courting pattern. Dragons do this before deciding whether or not they want to choose the other to be their mate." Thorunn advised, surprising both since, while they knew Toothless and Dusk were very close, they had no idea that they were interested in one another in that manner.

"Wait...they're not going to forget we're here and go off to...you know...are they?" Hiccup asked as they finally reached above the cloud cover, the dragons evening out as Thorunn gasped, causing Hiccup to look back to see her mesmerized gaze, following towards the full moon above them as he realized that they weren't alone in the sky.

A type of dragon neither had ever seen was in the sky far above, but the thing that caught their attention was they were in pairs, like the Night Fury's, and some were even letting out bursts of fire every so often that would illuminate the sky in colors of red, green and purple.

"This is...wow." Thorunn murmured as her arms relaxed around Hiccup's frame upon realizing they were in the middle of something that no one besides them had ever seen before.

"Wow, indeed." Hiccup agreed, watching as Toothless and Dusk continued to circle around one another, instinct leading them now on what to do. Hiccup was brought back to the girl on the saddle with him though when he heard her shuffling, looking back in shock as he saw her stand. "Thorunn, what're you doing?" Hiccup asked, reaching to pull her back down on to the saddle.

Thorunn pulled back when he reached for her, surprising the teen before latching her flight vest together. "Do you trust me?" Thorunn asked, confusing Hiccup since it was such a random question for while they were flying.

"Wha...yes. Why?" Hiccup asked, but he didn't get the chance to have an answer as Thorunn moved back onto Toothless's tail, nearly giving Hiccup a heart attack as he feared she would fall.

Thorunn pulled some leather strips from her vest, wrapping them around Toothless's tail before attaching them to the part that let Hiccup control his flight. "There you go, boy. This should let you fly alone for at least an hour or so." Thorunn advised the dragon, but he just ignored her as instinct told him to follow Dusk.

Hiccup watched as Thorunn moved back over towards him, surprised with how on a seconds notice she could give Toothless back control for a brief time, before she motioned to him to stand. "What're you doing?" Hiccup asked, not so keen on the idea of standing up since his prosthetic made it hard to keep his balance while standing.

"You said you trust me, so let's give these two a little alone time." Thorunn said, and before Hiccup could protest Thorunn jumped from the saddle, laughing when she heard Hiccup cry out for her before she rose above Toothless, wings outstretched. "I have a second vest, it's in Dusk's saddle. I'll let you use it for tonight." Thorunn advised him as she noticed how he looked ready to faint

"Thorunn...I don't know how to use that thing." Hiccup reminded as he watched Thorunn swoop over onto Dusk to retrieve the second vest, not having even known she had a backup vest.

"It's easy, if you trust me I'll show you." Thorunn advised before grabbing the vest out of the pouch in Dusk's saddle and leaping back into the updraft to go back to Toothless.

Hiccup frowned nervously as Thorunn landed back on Toothless, vest held out to him. "Thorunn, they might not catch us if we do this." Hiccup reminded, but the confident look in Thorunn's gaze gave him slight comfort in hoping she knew what she was doing.

"Dusk will catch us if we need to be caught. Trust me Hiccup, we'll be fine." Thorunn assured before watching as Hiccup nervously took the vest from her and slipped it on. "Fits you better than it does me." Thorunn commented as he latched the buckles on.

Nervous and unsure, Hiccup slowly stood up, watching as Thorunn jumped from the saddle once more and caught the updraft that was beneath them. Knowing he wasn't getting out of this, Hiccup jumped, yelling out as he began to fall.

His eyes closed in fear as he forced his arms away, hoping to every god in existence that he wasn't going to bounce off the water below, but instead he felt a weightlessness, opening his eyes to see the clouds below as he realized he was rising swiftly through the air, a dragon not with him.

Looking up, Hiccup met the glowing green eyes that convinced him to leap from his dragon's saddle, seeing her smile at how he was flying. "See, it's not that hard. If you've watched Toothless, it's like instinct." Thorunn called to him before diving down into the cloud cover, Hiccup gathering up enough courage to take after her.

Toothless twirled around Dusk as they began to dive bomb, bodies inches apart as they twirled through the clouds, each shooting a plasma blast into the cloud to illuminate it a brilliant purple for a brief moment.

Hiccup gasped as the cloud turned purple in front of him, evening out before yelping when something shot past him. "You need to use the updraft, it'll make it a lot easier to rise up." Thorunn's voice reached him through the cloud, before he opened the wings wide, shooting up and out of the clouds as he saw Thorunn soaring away towards the island.

Thorunn looked up at the dragons that seemed to dance through the air, wishing her vest was good enough to be able to do that before she felt something brush against her, looking to the side to see Hiccup had caught up with her. On his face was an amazed smile at how he was flying alone, earning a smile from her as well before she rose above him a bit, deciding to poke fun at their dragons as she twirled around him.

"Oh how's that fair? I don't know how to do that." Hiccup protested, teasing smile held though to ensure she knew he was joking.

"I've been flying since I was nine, it's in my blood to know how to work wings at this point." Thorunn reminded with a smile before a mischievous glint entered her green eyes.

"Oh no, what're you planning?" Hiccup asked, before yelling out when Thorunn closed her wings and began to fall. Before he even knew what he was doing, he shot down after her to try to catch her.

Thorunn opened her wings slowly, beginning to spin down as she had seen the dragons above them begin to do. She didn't know how she knew how to do this, maybe the years of living with dragons rubbed off on her more than she thought, but suddenly she felt someone match up with her, looking to her side to see Hiccup matching her movements.

The two smiled as they continued to twirl through the clouds together, catching updrafts again to rise and see the village lights in the distance.

"It's so beautiful." Thorunn murmured as she flew beside Hiccup, eyes caught on this treasure of an island.

Hiccup's eyes were elsewhere though, warm smile still splayed across his lips. "Yeah." Hiccup agreed as he watched the brunette who seemed at home flying through the skies.

The Night Fury's reached the water slowly as they pulled up, tails creating ripples in the water as they met in the water, wing tips brushing together as Toothless smiled over at Dusk, chest puffing out as she gave a content purr at his presence.

They began to swirl back up into the sky to retrieve the two flying teens who were now reaching below the clouds.

They began their descent towards the water slowly as Toothless and Dusk appeared below them, Toothless catching the two in his saddle before they even realized he was there. Hiccup snapped the wings shut before looking back at Thorunn to see she was safely in the saddle, letting out a sigh of relief.

Toothless looked up at the two vikings with a smile, eyes flickering to the Night Fury that flew beside them when he heard her let out a purr again, chest puffing once more in pride over how he had managed to successfully complete their courting flight with none other than the beautiful Dusk.

Thorunn let out a sigh as the flight evened out, arms wrapping around Hiccup's waist again out of reflex as the man in front of her smiled happily over how the night has turned out. His smile only proceeded to grow when he felt Thorunn lay her head against his shoulder, face going into his neck as he felt the fluttering warmth in his chest reach a new height, finally realizing what this feeling that he had for Thorunn wasn't just friendship anymore.

As if reacting on instinct like the dragons, Hiccup turned his body to reach an arm back and pull Thorunn closer to him, smiling wider when she didn't fight him for the closer contact.

Before long, Toothless began their descent back down into the cove, taking things slower than usual when he realized how relaxed the two were in his saddle, almost as if they weren't going to part.

Unfortunately, they finally came to a soft landing in front of the water, Dusk landing seconds later as Hiccup jumped off quickly to help Thorunn down, feeling like it was appropriate what with the romantic flight through the night sky.

Thorunn smiled as Hiccup lifted her off Toothless's saddle and set her back down on the ground, part of her not wanting to even land but knowing that they couldn't just stay up in the clouds all night. Even if it was a million times better to be up in the sky with Hiccup.

"Thank you...for the flight." Thorunn murmured quietly as their eyes met in the moonlight, Toothless looking between the two with a knowing smile before walking off, directing Dusk to follow so they could have a brief moment alone.

"Ah, you don't need to thank me. I mean, you're the one who gave me this to use." Hiccup said, tugging at the vest before beginning to remove it. He was stopped when Thorunn's hand caught his as it landed on the buckle.

There was that spark again, almost like lightning touching his flesh as her hand stopped him from removing the vest. "You...keep it. I'll work on it for you, if you want to keep flying that is." Thorunn murmured as Hiccup's eyes went from her hand on his to her own as she looked up at him, never really noticing just how beautiful those glowing green eyes were before.

Though, then again, he was always enchanted with them as she looked at him.

"Of course I will. Maybe we could...do this again...sometime?" Hiccup asked nervously as her hand remained on his own, seeing the small smile grace her pretty little lips as Hiccup found himself never wanting to break this moment with Thorunn.

Thorunn felt the warmth blossom in her chest again at Hiccup's words, having felt it up in the sky when they were flying and when she held onto him, but it wasn't until now when she finally realized what this was that she was feeling. She had only ever been told once to be weary about this feeling, and that was twelve years ago.

She was falling for Hiccup. A man whom she'd only known for four months, but she was falling for him like her mother told her she would fall for someone one day. And for some reason, she felt nervous and comforted in knowing it was Hiccup she was falling for.

"I...I would like that. Maybe when it's not so cloudy out." Thorunn murmured quietly in response to Hiccup's question as she finally realized just how close they were, and how her hand was still being electrified by his own that she was stopping from removing his flight vest.

"Maybe we could work on the vest together to see about making it where we won't need the dragons to land." Hiccup murmured as his eyes fell from Thorunn's own gorgeous glowing green orbs upon realizing she was so close to him, instead falling on her lips as she smiled softly at the idea of improving the flight vest together.

"Maybe." Thorunn murmured before realizing that they were both slowly leaning in towards one another.

Their eyes closed as they moved closer, so close that they could feel the others breath and pounding heart. It was about then that Thorunn ripped away though, shocking Hiccup since they were so close and she suddenly ripped away from him. "Thorunn..." Hiccup muttered upon seeing the confused and stressed look etched over her pretty face, frowning as her eyes met his only to divert quickly.

"I...I'm sorry. It's just...I...we shouldn't." Thorunn stuttered, trying to figure out what to say since she'd never been that close with anyone, not even Snotlout and he had been trying to get her to kiss him for weeks.

"Shouldn't?" Hiccup asked, confused since last he noticed, Thorunn was completely comfortable up close and snuggling up to him on Toothless's saddle, and now she was acting like she was either afraid or nerv...wait.

She didn't know what any of this was. No one had ever explained to her anything to do with humanly emotion. So she might not have known what he was about to do. Even if that was a possibility, it still hurt having her rip herself from his body.

Hiccup was about to step up and ask her what she meant, when suddenly Toothless and Dusk appeared in front of them, fish sticking out of their mouth as they obviously found a lot in the coves waters. Before he knew what was going on, Toothless regurgitated his fish onto him, smiling in hopes that Hiccup would enjoy the gift. "Toothless!" Hiccup protested as Dusk proceeded to do the same to Thorunn, only she wasn't as affected by it.

Well, the dragons sure knew how to ruin a moment.

After getting cleaned up, the two moved back over towards the newly re-lit campfire, settling down as Hiccup realized all chances for tonight were ruined by the dragons who had to be so rude as to ruin his chances, but when it came to them they jumped off of their backs thousands of feet in the air to let them be.

If it weren't for the fact that dragons brought them together in the first place, he'd really be wondering why he had one himself.

As the two humans settled down by the fire, Dusk nudged Toothless's neck with her snout, rising up to head off. Toothless watched her in confusion as to where she was going, before taking notice of the way her rear swayed as she walked.

Something in him told him to follow, so he jumped up and trotted off after the female Night Fury.

Dusk led the way in silence, leaping over fallen logs and rolling through bushes as she glanced back at Toothless every so often to make sure he was following her.

Indeed, the male was following her every movement with his eyes. He'd never seen her like this before, so commanding and at the same time so curious. Then again, he'd never even performed the courting flight before tonight.

It was a night full of surprises.

Before long, the two emerged into the grassy clearing where they met, Dusk feeling as if something had been telling her to come here with Toothless, just like her instinct told her to perform that flight earlier with him.

Toothless smiled at the sight, figuring that Dusk wanted to spend some time alone since they rarely got to these days. They were either with their riders, or they were helping other dragons. Even when they were together, they were always being watched.

Dusk nudged Toothless into the center of the clearing, patting down the tall grass quickly so she could see him fully. Toothless sat on his hind legs and watched her until finally she sat in front of him.

Dusk looked over Toothless before motioning for him to move back down onto all fours, part of her hoping she knew what she was doing since she'd never done this before.

Toothless cocked his head to the side in confusion, but followed her commands and dropped back down onto the ground. Dusk opened her wings wide, tail swishing out behind her to show him her body as the male looked at her surprised.

It took him a few seconds to realize what she was doing, but when he did he was even more surprised. She was trying to begin the ritual to choose a mate. He didn't even think she knew how to do it, but somehow she did obviously since she lowered her head to him, showing she was submissive to the male as her wings dropped onto the ground.

Toothless for once was nervous. He'd never had a mate before, before Dusk he hadn't even seen another Night Fury since he was a hatchling. He only knew that the male had the right to examine his potential mate, and decide if they were fit enough or not to carry produce his hatchlings.

That was another thing he wasn't too keen on happening, since he knew nothing about being a father. He was barely an adult dragon himself even.

Dusk looked up when Toothless just remained still, something telling her he didn't want to continue as her head dropped lower in thinking that he was rejecting her.

Toothless, the only other Night Fury, was rejecting her.

Dusk let out a snort, deciding if he was then she wouldn't show her disappointment as she stood up tall, about to go off back to Thorunn.

But instead she felt a gentle tongue lash against her scales, looking back to see Toothless right in front of her now, not nervous any longer since he saw the way it had hurt Dusk in thinking he was rejecting her.

Toothless spread his wings out, standing tall as he puffed his chest out at Dusk, deciding if he was to examine her then it would only be fair if she got to do the same.

Dusk narrowed her eyes in confusion, slowly moving forward. She had examined him before, when they would wrestle. But, he never got the chance to do the same to her.

Once she had gone around once, Dusk presented herself to Toothless, hoping that this time he would either formally reject her, or at least try.

Toothless dawned a devious smile before trotting forward to examine his potential mate, eyes lingering on her rear before he gave a nip at her tail, dashing back since normally she would attack him for biting like a hatchling.

Dusk remained still though, instinct reminding her that she needed to stay still for Toothless's inspection. Once he was done, he walked back around and sat in front of Dusk.

Their eyes met as Dusk waited for his decision. Minutes went by, the night birds and crickets the only sounds that came from around them.

Finally, it set in what Toothless was doing. Dusk stood up to return to Thorunn, but instead of getting the chance, Toothless lunged and pinned her on her back on the ground.

Dusk was surprised, she didn't think that this was part of the ritual. But...it's Toothless. Toothless isn't a normal Night Fury. Letting out a purr in realizing he was accepted her, Dusk leaned up and dragged her tongue across his nose.

A deep rumbling came from the male's chest, happy to finally have a mate and definitely happy that his chosen mate would be none other than Dusk. As she licked him, he lowered his head to be at eye level with the female.

Eyes locking, Toothless decided to try mimicking some of the things he saw the humans do, flickering his tongue against Dusk's maw with a playful glint in his eyes to try to get her to accept.

Dusk purred at his sweet gesture before following suit, giving their shot at what the humans liked to refer to as a kiss as Toothless met maw with Dusk's, tongue invading her mouth for a few seconds before he released the female.

Snuggling up into the strong, masculine Night Fury, Dusk let out another content purr as they relaxed into one another, remaining like this for the rest of the night.

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**This, so far, was my favorite chapter to write. Mainly because I went flying for the first time ever myself recently, so I knew exactly how it felt. Personally, I loved it after the first five minutes. Anyways, I hope you all enjoyed the chapter. By the way, it wasn't planned TGirl, but they got together! I wrote this chapter days ago, but it was planned for a while that Toothless and Dusk would get together.**

**Just took me a while to figure out how to do the whole acceptance ritual thing.**

**Oh, in response to your idea, I actually like the sounds of it. Tell me more and I'll see what I can do. So enveloped with this story right now though. It's like an addiction writing this.**

**Thanks as always for reading! Next chapter will be up on schedule, unless we hit ten reviews today. Then I'll just keep going.**


	15. Mistakes

**Greetings readers! Don't have much to say this time, so I'm going to let you get right to the chapter. Enjoy and don't forget to review.**

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**Hiccup POV**

"Dusk...I need you to stay here on Berk." I could hear voices, dragons grumbling and whimpering.

"I won't be gone long, just stay with Toothless and Hiccup." Wait...where am I? I'm not at home, that's not dad.

Thorunn.

I opened my eyes to see quickly to be met with the blinding light of the morning sun, shading my eyes as I looked around.

The campfire was stomped out now, as apposed to last night when it was blazing.

I looked to the other side of the pit, expecting to see Thorunn still sleeping, but instead no one was there.

I stood up quickly, looking around for her, but all I saw was Toothless and Dusk down by the water. "Dusk, where's Thorunn?" I called to the dragon in hopes she would take me to wherever Thorunn had gone off to.

A confused look appeared in her golden eyes, and that was about the time when I remembered hearing talking while I was trying to sleep, realizing that the voice I was hearing had to have been Thorunn's voice.

I took off running back towards the village. Something's not right. Thorunn wouldn't just take off and leave me here in the cove alone.

The villagers were just beginning to start their daily business as I got back to the village, ignoring everyone who said good morning or asked me how I was doing.

I kept running towards Thorunn's house until finally I was running in.

The house was silent. That was my next sign something wasn't right since we left Pythius and Zu here last night.

"Thorunn!" I called, looking around for any sign of her but seeing none. I went into her bedroom, expecting to find her sleeping in bed, but instead I saw parchment set carefully on her bed.

I don't know why, but my heart sank at the sight of nothing but a piece of paper on the bed.

It was upon picking it up and reading it that I slid down to the floor beside her bed, shock beginning to set in.

Thorunn left Berk.

**Thorunn POV**

Pythius gave a grumble of boredom as we carefully worked our way through the overgrown grass, trying to be as quiet as we could.

"Shush, you know we can't be making too much noise here." I reminded her, continuing on upon seeing the defeated look since she knew now was not a time for games.

It took us three days to get onto this damned island, I really didn't want to get caught now that we were here.

I looked up through the trees to see Zu soar over us, keeping a careful eye out above to make sure no one was aware that we were here.

That would definitely ruin our day.

"Alright, Pythius. Let's get to this cave already." I muttered before breaking out into a run, deciding that I'd much rather get what I need and get the hell off Gunnar island before my psychotic father finds out I'm still alive, and on his island none the less.

Pythius stomped after me as we ran. At this point in my life, I'm glad to have grown up with Boneknappers. They helped me run faster than most of the viking women I've seen.

Can come in handy if we need to escape quickly from good ol' daddy.

Within the hour we finally came to the cave that I haven't seen since I was eight. Nine years, and it looks like no one's been here since.

"Pythius, burn the vines off please." I muttered, motioning towards the algae that blocked our path. Pythius nodded before finally letting out the blast of fire, Zu landing with a thud behind us as she worked.

I reached back and scratched him under the chin, knowing he was none too happy to be here. I'm not too happy about having to do this either.

But, unfortunately sometimes you have to do stupid things.

Finally, the vines were nothing bush ash at our feet, so I stepped forward to enter the cave that I hadn't been in since I was eight.

Zu followed directly behind me, Pythius taking the rear and standing guard at the entrance in the event some stray viking comes across us.

I heard Zu let out a grumble before I grabbed a stick off the cave floor, holding it in front of him so he could light it for me.

We continued walking silently until finally we came to the room that had incorporated some of my more pleasant childhood memories as I walked over to the furthest wall, taking the flaming stick and using it to light some of the vines and moss that now took over the cave.

Once the cave was alight, my eyes fell on the old painting on the wall, eyes shutting as I remembered the day I drew it with my mother.

"Welcome home, Zu." I muttered mockingly before opening my eyes, moving to go grab the one thing I willingly came back to this island just to get.

It didn't take long to find it, since in a cave full of green moss and algae, a brown leather book sticks out like fire. I ran my fingers over the now cracking leather before turning my eyes back to the painting on the wall of the cave, remembering what led up to it fully.

"Bet you remember the last time we were here, huh Zu?" I called to the dragon, but he just remained stock still near the entrance to the room as I was forced to remember the last day we spent in this room.

The last day we saw my mother and painted the wall together.

**Nine Years Previous**

A child's gentle laugh echoed across throughout the forest as a young Boneknapper pricked his ears up at the sound, ready to take off if someone came near. He knew better than to stay around when the humans came.

The Boneknapper stood up, stretching his wings to take flight, but at that moment there was a crack of a branch behind him, whirling for the attack, only to be met with innocent, young eyes.

The girl was frozen in her steps, having been on her way to see her mother, not a dragon like her father's speaker told her she should bring to them to have chained up.

The Boneknapper looked down at the girl for a second before shuffling forward, knowing that this was just one of the human's infants. It was of no harm to him.

The girl stepped back when the large Boneknapper took a step towards her, ready to scream, but instead the dragon cocked his head to the side, examining the young child.

"Thorunn!" A voice. A full grown human male's voice. A threat.

Something inside the dragon told him to pull the child in to the clearing, to protect. He didn't know why, since he had no respect nor want to be near humans, but he found himself grabbing the human in his jaws and dragging it into his vicinity, surprised when it didn't give a cry of fear.

Instead, the young brown haired girl looked up in confusion upon having the dragon pull her to it. She had thought all dragons were amazing, but her father never wanted her near one. Let alone being pulled about by one.

"Thorunn, where are..." The Boneknapper let out a warning grown at the sight of the human, claws outstretched upon seeing the human held an ax in their hands. "Dragon!" The moment the man let out the cry of his existence, the dragon lunged, grabbing him up in his jaws.

Thorunn went wide eyed as the dragon pulled her escort up into it's jaws, jumping into the air and throwing him clear through the forest with little effort.

Once the human with the ax was gone, the dragon turned back to the now nearing child, a curious look in her green eyes.

"You...got rid of him? Thank you." Thorunn murmured quietly, having been running to get away from the man that tried to tell her what to do. Remembering to be polite, Thorunn stuck a hand out to the dragon.

The Boneknapper looked down at her hand, confused for a moment but something told him to lean in to her touch. The girl let out a giggle upon feeling his bony snout. When she took another step towards him, it was then that he heard the viking's war cries. With a quick leap over the girl, he was gone into the trees in a flash.

Thorunn was left watching the dragon run in curiosity, wondering if she'd ever see it again.

It took her but three days to find his hiding place, having been out walking with her mother and stumbling upon a cave. "I have something to show you, little runner." Thorunn giggled at her mother's nickname for her, since she gave her that name due to her tendency to run away from the escorts her father tried to have follow her about.

"What is it?" Thorunn asked curiously as her mother lead her over to the cave, crouching down to be at eye level with her young child.

"Promise not to run away?" Thorunn's mother asked carefully as Thorunn cocked her head to the side in confusion at the question.

"Why would I run?" Thorunn asked back. Her mother smiled before leading her in to the cave. Once inside, a low fire rose in the center of a room in the back of the cave, illuminating the young Boneknapper that had been waiting for the adult woman, eyes widening when it saw the woman wasn't alone.

"Thorunn, I'd like you to meet someone." Thorunn let out a giggle upon seeing the Boneknapper, running from her mother to the Boneknapper as it looked from mother to child, unsure of what to do but suddenly understanding now why it felt the need to protect the infant days previous.

"Is he yours?" Thorunn asked as she sat down beside the dragon, who still looked confused by the extra human with the woman.

"No, dragons don't belong to us dear. They're their own. This, is Zu. Now, you can't let anyone know he's here. He's a secret." Thorunn's mother explained as Thorunn dawned a confused look that could match Zu's.

"Why?" Thorunn asked quietly as her mother sat down in front of her.

"Your father...he'll want to do bad things with Zu. He can't know that he's here. Do you trust dragons, Thorunn?" Thorunn's mother asked as the girl dawned a thoughtful look that only made her mother laugh at the sight.

"I trust Balder. I could trust Zu." Thorunn admitted, looking up at the watchful Boneknapper.

"Dragons are our friends Thorunn, never forget that. No matter what your father tells you, or shows you, always trust them. Because one day they may even save your life." Thorunn's mother explained as the girl's eyes locked with Zu's.

"Alright, Momma." Thorunn agreed before standing up, reaching up to pet Zu on the snout again as he leaned down into the girl's touch.

Thorunn's mother smiled at her, before offering the idea of drawing on the cave walls with Zu's help.

**Present Day**

I didn't find out until days after the day that we were in here that my mother had left this book for me, telling me that when I was older to come find it. I had forgotten about it, but after that night with Hiccup and flying through the sky alone, I remembered that I needed to come and get it.

My mother had told me that it would make many things clear, so I guess she knew back then that my life would go down.

But at least I didn't die at the flame of a dragon like she was forced to weeks after we brought me here. I felt Zu nudge me, bringing me out of my thoughts.

"Let's go, best not be here too long." I muttered, tucking the book into my vest before leading the way back out of the cave.

We barely got back out of the cave when I felt like something was wrong. I looked between Zu and Pythius, knowing that we needed to get out of here now. But as I took a step towards Zu, a fireball hit the ground inches from my feet.

I looked up in time to see Balder appearing on the rocks above the cave entrance, my father tucked between his spines as Zu and Pythius both dashed to my side. "Daughter, eight years." I growled upon hearing him speak, the voice that heralded doom.

I was about to speak back, when my ears caught the sound of movement in the bushes behind us.

"We would think that you'd be smarter than to let your dragon fly freely over Gunnar Island, Thorunn. It has been eight years, after all." I reached for the dagger I kept hidden at my side upon seeing Gumboil walk out of the bushes with two vikings on either side of him.

"Well hello to you too, uncle." I called sarcastically to him as I held my dagger in front of me, one eye on Gumboil and the other on my father who was still atop his Stealth Dragon.

"Oh, enough with your childishness, little runner." Gumboil snarled at me, yelping when Zu shot a blast of fire in his direction.

"Now, I wouldn't call me that. Zu get's _very_ angry when someone uses the words my mother used." I reminded the old man as he tried to steady himself, but I could see him shaking visibly from where I stood with Zu and Pythius.

"Enough!" The whole island seemed to go silent as my father's voice erupted from the rocks above us, standing up on Balder's head as I looked to Zu, knowing we needed to get out of here now.

"Why are you on Gunnar Island? You come back to give us your dragons, or have you come to die at the hands of Balder since you let that Night Fury escape with you?" Gumboil asked as I looked between him and my father.

"Neither, I came to relive old memories." I replied sarcastically, dodging easily when Balder shot a fire blast at me.

"I'd tell the truth, little girl. Balder's been waiting years to roast you." Gumboil reminded me as I turned my eyes from him, not afraid of a man without a dragon or a sword.

Instead, my eyes fell on the Stealth dragon who was glaring down at us from up on the rocks.

"Balder wouldn't harm me." I replied simply, looking up to my father to see he was enraged by the accusation before stomping on the Stealth dragon, forcing him to shoot another blast at me as I jumped up, grabbing onto Zu's horn.

"Grab her!" Gumboil ordered the vikings that were with him, but Zu and Pythius each let out an island shaking roar, causing the men to double and cover their ears in pain.

"Zu, Pythius take off!" I yelled through their roars, shooting off into the air quickly as their roars cut to an end.

"Balder! Kill!" Zu took off faster upon hearing my father's order to the Stealth dragon beneath his feet, and as I looked back I saw Balder shoot into the sky after us.

"He's no good in the sky, Madguts! Stealth dragon's cant hide in the sky, nor are they faster than me!" I yelled down to my father as Zu shot around the mountain, Pythius just ahead of us leading the way.

Zu shot upwards as a fire blast narrowly missed us. I could hear my father begin to yell in fury behind us as Zu began to rise up into the clouds.

"You'll be dead at my feet, you screw up child!" I laughed at my father's words. Not because it was funny, or because I was mocking him though. This was a nervous laugh. "I will find you! I will kill you, and whoever has been hiding you!" My blood turned to ice at his words as I realized just how much we had messed up in coming back here just for my mother's book.

I stood up on Zu's head as he evened out, tucking the book into his saddle that Hiccup had given us to use. Zu let out a confused roar as to what I was doing, but all I did was pull my dagger from my vest.

"Zu, be fast." I muttered before leaping from his saddle, closing my eyes as he let out a cry of surprise as I dropped fast, my father coming into sight as I opened my wings quick.

His eyes, instead of furious, were surprised for once, before I dive bombed them. Balder let out a cry of surprise as I landed on his back, but my father whirled with his sword ready as I jumped, catching an updraft that put me behind him, slamming my father into his shoulder as he let out a roar of fury.

Balder began to thrash about as we fought. I yelled out when my father's sword managed to clip the side of my face, before returning the favor to his chin. "You're just like your mother, weak!" At his words, I threw myself into him, sending us both flying from Balder's back.

I went to open my wings, but instead I felt a hand grab my leg, dragging me down with him. "What kind of a father kills his own family?!" I roared at him as we fell towards the island below.

He didn't reply, instead he attempted to slam his sword into me, but I parried it with my dagger, sending it flying. He let out another furious roar before grabbing me by the throat.

I could feel my vision darkening as his grip tightened, until I felt claws grab onto us, looking up to see Zu and Pythius above, Pythius distracting Balder while Zu tried to stop us from falling.

My father lashed out at Zu, giving me the chance to drop from Zu and open my wings, catching the updraft that came from the island as my father let out a furious roar.

Pythius caught me as I was on my way up, Zu dropping my father before we took off towards the mountains to try to lose them in the ridges should Balder be able to catch my father in time.

**Hiccup POV**

I kicked the barrels of fish in front of Toothless and Dusk, knowing they were worried about me too but not caring at the moment.

She's been gone for ten days now. Ten days, and I don't even know if she's alive.

Her note said she went to Gunnar Island. Her father's island. Of all places to go, she had to go there. Why there?

I wanted to go after her, but my father picked around the fourth day to go on a trip for a meeting with some of the other chiefs, leaving me and Gobber to watch the village.

Why did she have to leave me like this?

"Hiccup?" I looked up as Astrid walked into the academy, worried look on her face.

Did I say Toothless and Dusk were worried about me? Guess I forgot about the rest of the village.

"I'm fine, Astrid." I reminded for the umpteenth time since Thorunn took off.

"Hiccup, you're not fine. You're supposed to be helping the village with Gobber, and instead you're moping around and..." I whirled on her as my temper finally peaked.

"And what? Worrying about one of the most amazing girl's I've ever met? Worrying about how she might be dead, or never come back? I'm sorry Astrid, but I've actually got real feelings besides punching things and yelling at people!" I snapped finally, not wanting to deal with anyone right now, especially her.

My gaze softened upon seeing the sad look on Astrid's face after I finished, groaning as I ran my hands over my face in frustration. "Hiccup, we're worried about her too. We just...we need to worry about home first." Astrid muttered quietly as I turned my attention back to Toothless and Dusk who were sitting nearby, whimpering from my yelling.

"Thorunn's part of our home too, Astrid. So technically, I'm doing my job." I remarked before walking over to the Night Fury's to try to get them to eat.

"Hiccup, she's from the Murderous Tribe. She's not a Hooligan." Astrid said, and at that my fist clenched over her need to always point things out about Thorunn like this.

"She's a Hooligan. Now, go watch the twins to make sure they don't do something stupid while they're supposed to be fixing stalls." I demanded, sighing when I finally heard her walk away, turning back to Toothless and Dusk once more.

**Third Person POV**

The crescent moon illuminated the dragons as they swooped down towards the island carefully, catching one soul building that still had lights on. Zu motioned to Pythius to go in through the upstairs window, while he dropped down in front of the chief's house, careful to not make too much noise.

Normal Boneknapper's don't have to worry about if they're quiet or loud, but Zu and Pythius, being with Thorunn who was now a wanted viking by her father's hands, had to be extra careful.

Dusk curled up beside Toothless on the bed as they listened to Hiccup stomp around downstairs, nuzzling her face into her mates neck as she whimpered.

Toothless opened his wing and wrapped it around the female, pulling her tight to him to try to comfort her. Things were getting more tense as they days passed on. At this rate, Toothless had a feeling Hiccup was just going to give up all hope for Thorunn returning soon.

Toothless was about to lay down and try to sleep with Dusk, when a head popped in the window, surprising both before Dusk leaped up, letting out a joyful cry at the sight of their friend.

Pythius smiled upon seeing the two mates, but her smile faded when Hiccup charged up the stairs, thinking the two dragons were doing things they shouldn't be in the house. His eyes widened upon seeing Pythius though. "Pythius...you're back? Where's Thorunn?" Hiccup asked quickly, before watching the dragon crawl back out the window, racing down the stairs after her in hopes she would take him to Thorunn.

Hiccup threw the door open, only to be met by a grumpy older Boneknapper who bowed down in front of Hiccup to try to get him to climb into his saddle. "Wait...she's not here, is she?" Hiccup asked the dragon upon seeing they were alone.

Zu frowned before motioning towards his saddle bag.

Hiccup growled, fist slamming against the door in frustration before walking over to see what Zu wanted to show him. He pulled open the saddle bag to find a bloodied piece of parchment instead, blood turning cold as he saw the words written on it.

"A wanted poster. Zu where is she?" Hiccup demanded, wanting to know where the girl was now, especially since he was pretty sure the blood on the paper was from Thorunn.

Zu frowned before motioning to him to get his dragon and follow.

Thorunn hissed as she let the water cleanse the injury on her face, glad she had taken her father's sword from him now. He would be searching his precious island for days in hopes of finding it.

She really just wished he would have fallen and died.

Upon finishing washing out the injury, Thorunn moved on to the burns on her arms that she had received from Balder shooting after them and managing to get her. Never had she felt so stupid as she did when she went back to that island.

All she knew is when Zu get's back with the book, it better have something good in it for what she's had to put up with.

She can't even go back to Berk. She's stuck here on this abandoned island until her dragons come back. As if on cue, she heard wings flapping nearby.

Zu stumbled into her camp seconds later, walking over to Thorunn as she continued cleansing her injuries. "Welcome back, mister. Have fun running off on me?" Thorunn asked, eyes still on her burns as she held a damp cloth to them.

Zu grumbled before laying down, ears ready for the sound of the Night Fury's though as Pythius came trotting into the clearing next.

"Well, wherever you two went, I hope you had fun." Thorunn remarked before hearing something else in the area, grabbing her father's sword as she jumped up in preparation for whoever was here to try and fight her now.

Thorunn pulled back her father's famed sword, ready to strike, only to drop it instead when she saw who it was. "Hiccup?" Thorunn asked in shock as he stumbled into the clearing, Toothless and Dusk following behind him.

"Thorunn." Before the girl knew it, Hiccup had her in a hug, letting go when she let out a cry of pain, looking down to see her burned arms. "What happened?" Hiccup asked upon seeing the burns and gash on her face.

"My father." Thorunn muttered, turning to go back to the water she had nearby to continue soaking the burns.

Hiccup was ready to help her, but instead he felt his temper spark at the situation. "Why did you run off to Gunnar Island?" Hiccup questioned immediately, wanting to know what was so important as to put her life in danger.

"I told you in the note. Had to get something of mine." Thorunn responded curtly, and that helped Hiccup's temper raise more.

"Well I sure hope it was worth risking your life and getting a bounty put on your head." Hiccup remarked as he held out the bloodied wanted paper Zu had given him.

"Not really." Thorunn replied honestly before going over to Zu to retrieve the book from his saddle, Hiccup's face reddening in anger over how she risked her life for a book.

"A book? That's it? A book?!" Hiccup finally snapped and kicked the nearest thing, which happened to be Madgut's sword which was on the ground.

"Well, that's not a good way to release anger." Thorunn commented, standing tall when Hiccup turned his glare on her.

"You think this is so funny? You take off one day, don't tell anyone and just leave a note, to almost die and you just act like it's nothing?!" Hiccup snapped as he stood on the other side of the clearing from Thorunn, wanting no closer than this to her right now.

"I don't think it's funny. I just think it's not worth getting worked up over." Thorunn replied before sitting down beside Zu.

"Not worth...you ran away from Berk and almost died at your father's hands! Do you have any idea how worried I've been about you the past ten days Thorunn?!" Thorunn jumped up upon Hiccup beginning to yell at her.

"I told you not to worry about me. And I didn't run away! I was going to come back when my burns were taken care of, Hiccup! I needed to go get this book, and I did and I'm safe, so stop freaking out for Odin's sake!" Thorunn snapped back as Hiccup took a step towards her, but the Night Fury's got in between them to make sure things didn't go horribly wrong here.

"Safe? That's a laugh! You have a bounty on you, are hiding on an island, injured, and you think you're safe?! You could have just came to me if you needed help! I could have sent someone to get the book for you! But instead you go off and almost get yourself killed!" Hiccup snapped furiously as Toothless shot him a warning glare to calm down.

"I'm alive! My dragons are uninjured! It's better this happen to me than one of you, because if it did then Madguts would be after all of you too!" Thorunn snarled as she pointed a finger at Hiccup for emphasis.

"And we would have dealt with it! You were like one of the Hooligan tribe, Thorunn. But instead you just runaway at dawn to go on some stupid mission for a stupid book!" Hiccup continued, grabbing the book from Thorunn's hands and tossing it aside in his anger.

"I didn't need your help! I've never needed your help! I can handle myself just fine, just like the past eight years of my life! I'm still alive, I don't need someone to do something to easy as getting a stupid book as you put it." Thorunn growled as she went over to pick up the book.

Temper finally worn thin, the next words that left Hiccup's mouth shocked all inside the clearing. "Fine, then don't bother coming back to Berk!" Hiccup snarled angrily, turning his back on Thorunn before realizing what fully he had said.

Thorunn felt her heart shatter a bit with his words. "Fine, goodbye then Hiccup." Thorunn muttered before walking over to Zu, done with the conversation as Hiccup realized fully what he had done.

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**You know, when I planned this story out, this one was actually not planned. Kind of just came up with it out of nowhere. But hey, you guys got to meet Madguts. And now he knows Thorunn's still alive. That's not good. Anyways, thanks for reading! I hope you enjoyed as much as I did writing it. Remember, I do double chapter when the story hits 10 reviews. So please remember to review!**


	16. Pain

**Greetings for a second time today readers! I know, we hit ten a while ago, been busy today unfortunately. Anyways, thanks as always for the reviews, and I'll let you get right on to the chapter. Enjoy!**

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Hiccup felt like crying right now. Yes, a seventeen year old viking man felt like crying. He'd done a lot of stupid things in his life, he knew this. But this by far was his biggest mistake.

Zu had forced Hiccup away after what he had said, not letting him near Thorunn again until she snuck back onto Berk to get what little things she had on the island from her house.

He was forced to simply watch as Zu and Pythius stood guard outside the door to ensure no one tried to come after her.

No one on Berk would though, Berk was oblivious still of her bounty. But even if they weren't, she was too sweet and quiet to ever be of threat to any of them.

Hiccup collapsed back against a wall as he was forced to watch the woman who he had fallen for take her things from her house. He wanted so bad to go over and apologize, to explain he only said it because he was so scared he'd never see her again, but any time he got near Zu charged him to keep him away.

Hiccup finally buried his face in his hands as he felt like his heart was being torn apart, knowing it would go with Thorunn when she left.

Dusk whimpered as she looked over at the broken viking, knowing from the night it happened that it was just words. He didn't mean it. It was obvious to her and Toothless that Hiccup was bound to Thorunn like Toothless was bound to Dusk, but he was just too afraid to let her know how he felt.

No matter what they tried, they knew they wouldn't be able to convince him to reveal his feelings to her either. He was a stubborn viking.

Even if Toothless had heard him crying at least once per day in the past three days since the incident.

Thorunn looked around the house as she finished putting whatever she wanted from it in Zu's saddlebag, frown gracing her lips once more as she walked over to the fire pit and sat down, fingers finding the old leather book in her vest.

Zu watched as Thorunn sat down, grumbling to her to let her know they needed to go, but Pythius swatted him with her tail for his insensitivity. The poor girl was heartbroken, and he was rushing her.

Pythius crept over and curled herself around Thorunn as the girl slowly opened the book that had cost her the only true human friend she ever had. "Thanks Mother, hope this has some good stuff in it for what it's done." Thorunn muttered to herself, eyes closing as the want to cry rose once more.

Three days, she wasn't going to cry now. Not with him nearby. If she did, she'd break down and go back to him like a hatchling. She couldn't do that.

Besides, he didn't want her here anyways.

Thorunn rolled her eyes up towards the ceiling, blinking rapidly and calming her breathing to steady herself, before dropping her sorrowful eyes to the old book as her eyes found her name on the first page.

_Thorunn Little Runner_

A laugh actually left her lips for the first time in a long time at how, even now, that name managed to make her laugh.

Carefully flipping the old page, Thorunn began to read her mother's words to her.

_I know it's probably been some years since you've found this book, sweetheart. But, even if I'm not with you, I hope that this somehow helps. You probably have lots of questions, about yourself, about your father, about me or even other boys as you grow older. That's why I've written this ahead of time in hopes of helping you even long after I'm gone._

Thorunn felt her body begin to tremble as she read, realizing that this was her mother's guide for her life. It was almost as if she knew what was going to happen. Almost like she knew that she would die, and Madguts would come after her next.

Steadying herself once more, Thorunn continued to read a little longer until finally reaching a part that she didn't already know.

_Now, as you grow older, you're probably going to meet some handsome viking men. Odin knows when I met your father. I'm sure you'll have many questions. Like why do you think they're handsome, or why do they make you feel sad, or mad, or even happy out of nowhere._

_Odin's name, if I could sweetheart, I'd take all the pain for you that I know you'll probably feel as you hit your teens._

Thorunn finally broke down as she continued reading, tears flowing freely finally as Zu panicked, thinking the girl was seriously hurt since she hadn't seen her cry this bad since they first ran away from Gunnar. He was about to rush off to get some medical supplies, but Pythius stopped him quickly, trying to explain to the older dragon that this wasn't physical pain that Thorunn was feeling.

Sometimes, she really could understand why the older Boneknapper was still without a mate. He was as dumb as rocks when it came to feelings.

_You may fight, you may scream at one another or even say things you never meant, but Little Runner, always listen to your heart. Like with Zu, trust your heart and it'll never betray you. I know it may hurt, and you may want to run away like you always do, but I'm sorry dear, running doesn't always work as you get older._

_I sometimes hope as I see you run with the other children that you never act the same as them. That you never feel like them, or hurt like them. Odin knows, Zu obviously doesn't know what feelings are aside from protectiveness. But, Thorunn through this pain you'll grow, you'll learn, and you may even find a charming young man who you can settle down with and give me grandchildren._

Even as her tears continued to flow at how her mother seemed to pin her life completely, a laugh bubbled forth at the idea of her ever settling down and having children. What person would ever want to be with her, let alone have children with her.

Dusk whimpered as she moved back over towards where Toothless and Hiccup were sitting, having thought something was wrong and now feeling increasingly worse upon seeing Thorunn inside the house crying. She never liked the sight, it made her sad as well in knowing the girl was hurting this bad. She didn't even cry when injured, she'd just yell and scream.

Toothless frowned upon hearing his mate whimper, looking down at the depressed viking beside him and how his face was buried in his legs that were pulled up in front of him. The boy was in no better shape at all. His hair was getting long and unkempt, his eyes had dark bags under them from lack of sleep, his voice was raspy, eyes lifeless and his facial hair just completely unkempt.

He looked like he had just completely given up on himself.

It not only hurt the dragons in seeing this, but his friends and family as well, since Stoick had come back the previous day to find his son in this state. Unfortunately though, Hiccup wouldn't speak to anyone about what was going on.

Almost like if he did, it would put a dagger in his heart and twist it around and around until he was doubled over on the floor crying in pain.

When had it come to this point? One day, Thorunn was another trainer. A new girl with good skills with dragons.

Now, she had managed to steal his heart and batter it about before finally letting it shatter upon agreeing she would leave Berk and never come back.

Tears begin to flow silently into his pants as his arms wrapped around his legs, pulling them close as he looked near like a whimpering little child.

A grown viking, down against a building crying his heartbreak out into his pants like a child.

His friends stood nearby, watching sadly as Hiccup fell apart in solitude. Only one knew the reason why, as she had seen Thorunn packing her things into Zu's saddle bags earlier.

"What's wrong with screw up? Pretty lady hit him in his boys?" Snotlout asked mockingly, letting out a cry of pain when Astrid kicked him in his own for how he was being.

"His heart is breaking, you insensitive jackass." Astrid growled at the boy as he laid on the ground in pain before walking away, leaving Tuffnut and Ruffnut to laugh at Snotlout's pain as Fishlegs stood their awkwardly, unsure what to do.

Hiccup pulled his face out of his pants, rubbing at his eyes sadly before hearing someone walking over towards him, hope hitting him in hopes it was Thorunn, but frowning miserably when he saw it was just Astrid.

"Hiccup, are you okay?" Astrid asked quietly as she sat down beside the breaking teen, never having seen him in this much pain before.

"Leave me alone." His voice was raspy and cracked as he spoke, giving away that he had been crying over the girl who in a matter of a few short months had stolen his heart.

"Hiccup, try to talk with her. She will more than likely listen to you." Astrid offered, hoping he would listen but he just waved her off, not even giving her a sarcastic verbal response like he normally did when he knew something wouldn't work.

Toothless whimpered quietly, wishing the teen would at least try. None of them wanted to see Thorunn leave.

By the time Thorunn finished the old book, she was full force sobbing now, face buried in her hands as Zu panicked again, not wanting to see her like this. If she was like this because of some boy, then he'd go get the boy for her. Pythius didn't get a chance to stop Zu as he charged out of the house, taking off to look for where the boy was hiding.

"Wha...where did Zu go?" Thorunn asked quietly, voice frail and shaky as she turned to Pythius who was laying behind her.

Pythius only whimpered, nuzzling against Thorunn to try to calm her a bit more.

Hiccup finally began to stand up to go back to the Great Hall, not wanting to watch when Thorunn flew away since he knew that both she'd be flying off with his heart, and that he'd break down and want to go after her.

The moment he stood up though, teeth clamped down on the back of his leather armor, pulling him up roughly as Hiccup yelped, looking up to see Zu had him in his grip. "Zu...Zu I'm leaving I'm not...doing anything." Hiccup whined, struggling in the beast's grip to try to get away, but instead of throwing him like he thought Zu was going to, the dragon began dragging him towards the house down the street.

Toothless watched in surprise, wondering what was going on before following, knowing Dusk was already watching from a window to see what was going on.

Dusk looked up when she heard Zu's stomping footsteps, watching in surprise as the normally insensitive dragon carried Hiccup in his teeth towards the front door, the teen pleading with him to let him go.

Hiccup went limp in Zu's grip though when he was brought through the front door, not expecting the sight he was given and feeling even more pain at the sight before Zu released him, letting him drop to the floor to go fix what he had caused.

Thorunn had her face nuzzled against Pythius' chest, body still trembling but out of tears at this point. She was dehydrated and exhausted, and that just made the dragon coddling her even more worried, more so when Zu, being the idiot he is, brought the cause of this mess in through the front door and dropped him on the floor.

Hiccup silently sat up, glaring at the dragon that dropped him before his eyes instead fell on the trembling mess of a girl in the center of the room who was being coddled by the female Boneknapper, who obviously could care less about him being there.

Zu shoved Hiccup towards the broken down girl roughly when he didn't move, ignoring the glare he earned since he had caused this mess by telling Thorunn to never come back to Berk.

Thorunn could feel her body stop trembling slightly as she steadied her breathing. She could finally feel herself beginning to calm down. It was about then that she felt a hand on her back, flinching away in fear as she shoved herself back into Pythius, only to see it was Hiccup.

He was hurt at first by how she flinched at his touch again like when they met, but remembered that he was the cause of her being like this with how he treated her. He couldn't think of anything to say, so he tried to take Thorunn's hand to pull her to him, but she flinched away again.

Thorunn wiped at her face quickly to try to hide her weakness, but Hiccup was smarter. Even if he acted like Snotlout when he met her on that island, he still knew when she was upset. Thorunn was about to jump up and flee, but Hiccup caught her in his arms instead, holding tight as she began to struggle against him.

"Let...me go." Thorunn whined as she beat her fist against Hiccup's chest, the man just letting her as he felt her body begin to tremble once more, going limp within seconds when she realized he wasn't going to let her go.

"I'm sorry." Hiccup murmured as Thorunn's face fell against his shoulder, allowing him to speak against her ear as he held the trembling girl's frame to his own, feeling tears want to well up in his eyes but fighting it back for her sake.

Even if he was fighting back though, Thorunn could hear his pain in those two simple, yet enormous words. His voice was raspy and tired. He was hurting like she was, the only difference was probably that, being male, he wouldn't cry.

Odin's sake, she never cried either. But yet somehow the whole fact he wanted her off Berk and then finding her Mother's guide to her on how to survive the harsh world just finally ripped through her like her father's famed sword.

"I am so sorry, Thorunn." His voice cracked, he was losing his control. His arms tightened slightly as he felt Thorunn shake more in his arms, fists balled against his chest as what little control she had left of her pain broke, tears breaking free as they hit the teen's shoulder.

His heart broke more upon hearing Thorunn begin to sob quietly, glancing over at the dragons as they slipped out the door to give them some privacy. Not wanting to leave her, and feeling a cool draft rush in from the window, Hiccup pulled Thorunn closer to his chest with one arm, standing up carefully to bring her to her room where he could set her on the bed.

Thorunn didn't put up much of a fight for once, saddening the teen more since the girl he knew was a fighter. Wrapping his other arm under her legs to carry the broken girl, he began to carry Thorunn towards the back room.

Thorunn was surprised at first upon feeling Hiccup lift her up into the air, eyes opening to see what was going on, only to be met with his tired, near lifeless eyes. These were not the eyes she was used to, and that comforted her when they would be having serious discussions.

Thorunn frowned before burying her face back in his leather clad chest, just then realizing he was wearing not only his normal riding gear, but the vest she had given him as well.

Hiccup gently laid Thorunn down in her bed, sitting down beside her as his eyes fell on the bed beneath them, unable to look up and see how much he had hurt her anymore. It was killing him enough to hear her cries of pain, but to see it would just make him want to throw himself to the most vicious dragon he could find.

Silence fell over them for a bit as Thorunn tried to calm herself, reminding herself that she needed to leave. Even if he had apologized, he wanted her off Berk. It would be better for the both of them anyways.

Even if she felt her heart throb at the idea of leaving the first place she actually felt safe at for the first time in eight years.

"I...I should be getting Zu and Pythius ready." Thorunn murmured as she rubbed at her eyes, hoping Zu could fly solo since she figured the moment she hit the saddle she'd be out since she hadn't slept in about four days.

Hiccup's eyes widened, head snapping over to look at her. He had apologized, but yet she still wanted to leave. Just as Thorunn was about to get up, his hand caught hers, stopping her in her tracks as her eyes fell to their hands and how the touch felt like electricity across her skin.

"Thorunn...I'm sorry. For everything. I didn't mean anything that I said the other day. I was just...mad and worried because you had run off out of nowhere when I thought you were happy here. Please, you don't have to leave." Hiccup plead quietly with the girl, trying to catch those glowing green eyes that captivated him, but she would not look up at him.

"If it meant nothing, it wouldn't have been said." Thorunn muttered quietly, even though she knew by her mother's words in the book that when people got mad, things were said that could be just words and not mean a thing.

His heart dropped a bit at her words, realizing he was losing this fight. "Thorunn, please." Hiccup turned to face her completely, letting go of her hand and instead reaching up to nudge her face so she could look up at him. She again refused though, as the pain in her chest prevented her from seeing the pain that her friend was feeling.

"Hiccup, I can't." Thorunn whined, tears welling up in her eyes again since she couldn't risk the safety of these kind people on the island now that her father knew she was still alive.

"Why? Thorunn, it's like hell here without you." Hiccup admitted, since in the thirteen days that Thorunn had been gone, it felt like eternity to him. He found himself walking towards her house out of reflex to go see her.

"It'll be hell here if I stay, Hiccup." Thorunn replied, head snapping up to look at him, only to regret it when she saw the broken look in his eyes at her words. What little tears she had left sprung free again as Hiccup leaned forward, hand reaching up to try swipe the tears away with his thumb, surprised when Thorunn moved into his palm a bit before forcing herself away.

"Thorunn, please. I want you to stay, the dragons want you to stay, everyone wants you to. Please, I'll do anything to make up for what I did, just please don't leave." Hiccup plead, eyes locking with Thorunn's and frowning when she just began to cry more.

"I cant, Hiccup!" Thorunn cried through her tears, pushing his hand away this time when he tried to wipe them away. "Don't you see, my father knows I'm alive now! He'll be searching for me, and if he finds me here he'll burn the whole island to ash!" Thorunn whimpered, the thought alone pushing her further into despair as she fell back onto the bed, burying her face against the furs.

Hiccup felt his heart pound painfully at the sight before moving over, leaning against the headboard before pulling Thorunn into him like he did when she told him about her scars, smiling slightly when she relented and moved her face into his shoulder once more.

"I'll protect you, Thorunn. We all will. If he comes after you here, we'll hide you or we'll fight him. We have more dragons than he could ever hope to have, he'll never get you." Hiccup murmured quietly against the shell of Thorunn's ear, his warm breath soothing her slightly as her balled fists relaxed against his leather vest.

"It's not me I'm worried about." Thorunn muttered as Hiccup's eyes widened, realizing now what she was doing. She wasn't going to leave now because of what he had said, but to protect all of them from her psychotic, murderous father.

"Oh Thorunn..." Hiccup grumbled, letting out a sigh as he wrapped his arms tighter around the girl who could care less about herself and only wanted to help the others. "Please, stay. We'll be fine if you do, and we'll figure out a way to get your father to leave you alone. Just...please." Hiccup's voice turned to a whine now as he felt Thorunn relax more into his embrace.

Thorunn felt a pang in her chest at Hiccup's words. He was so set on trying to keep her from leaving. He wanted to protect her, deal with her father for her. But how could she put him through that? She had nothing of value to offer to him, and yet he wanted to risk his and his island's safety by keeping her there.

"Hiccup, I can't risk all of you." Thorunn murmured quietly, knowing that she wanted to stay more than anything, but if her father found her the island would be destroyed by him and everyone either killed or imprisoned.

"You won't be. He will never know you're here. Just...trust me. Don't leave, Thorunn." Hiccup plead one last time, face nuzzling into her temple as her face remained buried into his shoulder, wishing he had not worn his armor today so he could feel her better and hold her closer.

Thorunn sighed against his shoulder upon feeling him nuzzle against her. She didn't know if it was intentional, or if he did it by accident, but whenever her own dragons would nuzzle and snuggle up with her it would calm her easily.

She could feel her breathing steady and her heart begin to stop from slamming against her chest in pain as she felt his warm breath against her temple, reflectively relaxing in to him more.

He was willing to do anything to help her. To keep her on Berk. To make up for what happened that other day when their tempers were flaring and words that meant nothing were said.

Her hands slowly slid around the side of his body, tightening around him as she felt him stiffen in front of her at her touch, obviously having not expected her to wrap her arms around his abdomen.

"I...I don't want him to find me." Thorunn murmured quietly, voice clearer now than it had been as she began to calm a bit.

Hiccup could feel himself calm a bit more as he realized Thorunn was beginning to calm down as well. Rubbing one hand down her back to try to calm her better, Hiccup felt a smile force it's way onto his lips as she let out a gentle sigh, nuzzling further into his leather clad shoulder.

"He won't find you. We'll make sure he doesn't. I'll do whatever I have to to make sure you're safe, Thorunn. You belong here on Berk with us." Hiccup whispered quietly into her ear, pressing his nose to her temple as he felt her relax more at his words.

For the moment, he didn't want to speak, or move, or do anything. This was possibly one of the better moments in his life as he held Thorunn's now calmer form to his body, never wanting to part from her. He would protect her, no matter what he had to do he would.

"What...what if he does?" Thorunn's voice trembled a bit with her words, Hiccup's hand rubbing down her back more to calm her as he noticed the fear bubble up at the idea of the psychotic man finding where she was and coming after her and the island's inhabitants.

"He won't. We'll figure something out, Thorunn. I promise, you'll be safe." His voice wasn't raspy now, it wasn't cracking and it didn't hold pain. It was deep, rumbling his chest against them as he spoke and warm breath washing against her temple as well.

It didn't make her want to cry, or run away this time. Now, it calmed her. It made her feel safe as she realized what this tone was. He was protective of her. He wasn't going to let Madguts near her, let alone hurt her again.

Thorunn could feel exhaustion tugging at her now as she relaxed fully into Hiccup, arms beginning to release him as she focused on the gentle beat of his heart through the leather that kept her from feeling it's full force.

"Alright." Thorunn's agreement was like a gift from Odin. He felt the smile rise immediately as she pulled her face out of his shoulder. "Alright, I'll stay." Thorunn agreed once more as their eyes locked, small smile gracing her pretty little lips.

Hiccup's eyes fell from hers to those lips. It felt like they were back in the cove at that moment. His want to lean in was trying to overpower him, but he forced himself to look back up at her.

This wasn't the proper time for this. He didn't want to start this when there was so much pain. He wanted to do things right with Thorunn, hope things lasted unlike with Astrid were there was so much hatred between them.

Instead, Hiccup leaned forward, pressing a gentle kiss to Thorunn's temple to show that he was here for her. He wasn't going to let her get hurt anymore. He wasn't going to let Madguts get her.

Thorunn felt heat rise at Hiccup's lips on her temple, warmth bubbling in her chest once more as she was reminded of the night they went flying together. This was that same feeling. But, this time she didn't want to run away. She wanted to stay, try to figure out what this was that she was feeling.

Especially since her Mother's book told her to listen to this feeling and follow it to see where it lead her to.

Hiccup pulled away reluctantly, since he could feel exhaustion starting to hit him like a Gronkle slamming in to him. "Come on, let's get you somewhere else than here." Hiccup muttered, lifting Thorunn off of him gently.

"What do you mean?" Thorunn was confused. She had lived in this house for months, and Madguts had no idea she was there, so she didn't see the problem with staying here.

"I want to make sure you're safe, Thorunn." Hiccup's eyes locked with hers, showing his worry about leaving her alone here and how he wanted to protect her. "Right now, I think you should come back with Toothless, Dusk and I though so we can make sure you're safe." Hiccup explained, smiling when Thorunn gave a nod at his idea.

"Alright, but no guarantee that I won't fall asleep while we're walking." Thorunn advised, giving Hiccup a chance finally to see just how much she was worn and battered from the past few days. He frowned as he saw the dark bags under her eyes, and the way her eyes mirrored the exhaustion that she was feeling.

"Here, hold on." Hiccup reluctantly pulled himself from Thorunn, reaching over to the window by her bed and shoving it open, smirking when on cue he saw the sneaking Night Fury's who obviously had been listening to make sure their riders were okay. "Alright, Dusk I need your help in here." Hiccup advised the dragon, watching as she leaped up into the window without a second's hesitation.

Thorunn sat up upon Dusk leaping in through the window, watching as Hiccup adjusted her saddle before turning back to her. "Where are we going?" Thorunn asked before Hiccup carefully lifted her up, sitting her in the saddle before climbing in behind her.

"You're exhausted, we're gonna go back to my house so you can get some sleep." Hiccup advised as he wrapped one arm around Thorunn's waist to keep her in the saddle before giving the command to Dusk to take them back to the house.

"Hiccup, I can keep myself up. I'm not that exhausted." Thorunn advised as Dusk barreled out of the room and out the front door, charging down the street as Toothless followed behind them.

"Oh don't act like you don't like it." Hiccup immediately felt his face flare up as he let those words slip, turning his gaze away from Thorunn when she looked back at him in surprise. Fortunately, they barreled into the house then, so the subject dropped as Hiccup helped Thorunn off of Dusk's saddle.

"At least you kept a good eye on Dusk while I've been gone." Thorunn mused as Hiccup watched the two Night Fury's run off to go lay down together up stairs.

"Come on, let's get you to sleep." Hiccup said before leading Thorunn upstairs to his room to let her use his bed, deciding he could wait to sleep himself. He was more worried about her right now than he was about his own exhaustion.

Once upstairs, the two Night Fury's looked up from where they were curled up beside one another in their own bed, watching as Hiccup shoved some of the stuff he had left laying around aside quickly before leading Thorunn over to his bed.

"Ignore the mess, I haven't...well been trying to keep my room as clean recently." Hiccup murmured as he kicked some papers away from the bed as he had Thorunn sit down, able to see by her eyes that she was about to fall asleep at any moment if given chance.

"Well...I've seen your workbench at Gobbers, so I'm not surprised." Thorunn teased quietly, small smile held as Hiccup rolled his eyes at her before gently pushing her back onto the bed. "Wow, don't even say anything just push me back." Thorunn continued, but the moment her back touched the furs she could feel exhaustion trying to force her to sleep for the first time in four days.

"That's because I need you to sleep right now, not poke fun at me even though I know you love doing it." Hiccup reminded before walking over to the other side of his room to grab some more fur blankets for Thorunn, since now was the time of year when Berk started getting extremely cold and he wanted her to be comfortable as she slept.

"What about you?" Thorunn asked as Hiccup brought the blankets back to her, motioning for her to lay back fully on the bed.

"I'm fine, I'm gonna let you sleep right now." Hiccup advised as he watched Thorunn sit up as he passed the blankets off to her.

"You're just as exhausted as I am, Hiccup." Thorunn reminded as he shrugged at the idea, turning to go remove his leather armor and vest since, being a bit more tired it felt way heavier on him now.

"I can wait a little longer to sleep, Thorunn. I'm fine, I promise." Hiccup advised as he shrugged the leather off, dropping it onto his chair next to his desk before feeling something tug on his belt.

Hiccup hadn't even heard her get up, but Thorunn had him by his belt now and began to pull him back towards the bed until he was standing beside it, eyes locked on her hand that was still holding his belt and keeping him from going anywhere else.

"I can lay over here, and you right here, and we'll be fine. I can't just take your bed like that Hiccup. You're exhausted like I am." Thorunn murmured as Hiccup's eyes rose to meet hers, her voice almost like a lullaby as he relented and crawled in beside the exhausted woman.

Carefully pulling one of the fur blankets over to drape over Thorunn, Hiccup laid his head back once he was certain she was asleep, sleep tugging at his own eyes as he stretched out on his half of the bed.

Before long, Hiccup felt sleep claim him, last thing he felt being something shift into his side before he was out.

Toothless looked up at the two teens across the room as he heard movement, smile forming on his maw when he noticed the two snuggled together in the bed.

Deciding to follow, Toothless snuggled down happily with his own mate.

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**Heart wrenching, tear jerking chapter. I know, I was writing it and even I felt the pain of these two characters. Though, I am the author so I guess it's to be expected. The little sweetness at the end just made it all the more worthwhile though in my opinion.**

**Anyways, thank you for reading and reviewing as always. Next will be at twenty, since I've written up to chapter 20 at this point. Slowing down a bit as I get busier so had to put this cap at 20. Sorry.**

**Thanks as always for reading, and hope to see your reviews as always!**


	17. Houst Guests

**Greetings once again loyal readers! I just realized we're catching up fast to where I'm still writing at. Gotta work faster I guess. Anyways, I'll let you get right to the chapter so enjoy and don't forget to review.**

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Something smells amazing. He could hear movement downstairs, dragon's stomping and grumbling, and something searing.

Hiccup forced his eyes open, eyes flickering across the room to see Toothless and Dusk were already up. He moved his hand to the other side of the bed, expecting to find his sleeping partner, but instead he found cold furs.

His head snapped over to see Thorunn was gone, sitting up since in the few days they'd been staying in the same house together, she never got up before him.

His ears caught the sounds of voices downstairs, shifting over to get up as he heard the dragons downstairs grumbling, knowing immediately that they were Toothless and Dusk.

"Save some for the others, you two." Her voice was quiet as he started down the stairs, obviously trying to keep quiet since she must have wanted to let him sleep longer.

Thorunn looked up upon hearing Hiccup's prosthetic squeak, smiling at him before continuing cooking. "Well good morning." Thorunn called to him before he reached the bottom of the steps.

"Morning. You're up earlier than normal." Hiccup commented before his nose was overwhelmed with an amazing smell.

"I figured it's only fair, since you and your Father are letting me stay here, to give back." Thorunn said as Hiccup walked over to where she was stirring something over the fire, taking in the smell of what she was cooking. "I got up early to make some stew for you both today, since you're both so busy all the time and I've noticed you barely eat before you're off." Thorunn said as she turned to give Hiccup a taste of the stew.

Hiccup smiled before letting her shove the spoon with stew into his mouth, eyes rolling back since he never knew something could taste so good. He was used to the gruel and normal fish or vegetables that was always forced on to him since he was a kid. Not this wonderful concoction of lamb, carrots, and whatever seasonings she was using.

"By the gods, when did you learn how to cook so well?" Hiccup asked after swallowing the spoonful of amazing stew, watching as Thorunn went to get a bowl to fill for him.

"When you live alone, you have to learn how to cook and take care of yourself to ensure you're always healthy. Which means eat every morning before work, Hiccup." Thorunn chastised, smiling as he gave her an innocent smile before grinning when she passed him a bowl of the stew.

"Alright, alright. It'll take some getting used to, but I'll try to remember to eat. Though, when I wake up to this it's kind of hard not to." Hiccup said before going over to the table to sit down, Thorunn rolling her eyes playfully at the man before proceeding to pour some into two more bowls for Stoick and herself.

"What is this wonderful smell?" Stoick's loud voice finally arose, the chief having been woken by the same as his son. Upon seeing their house guest cooking, he walked over to take a whiff of what she was cooking.

"I made breakfast for you and Hiccup today, sir. It's the least I can do, since you've let me stay in your house the last couple of days." Thorunn said as she passed a bowl to the chief, smiling when she saw the big chief grin ear to ear at what she had done for them.

"You shouldn't have, little lass. But it's much appreciated. Haven't had someone do something like this for us since Hiccup's mother." Stoick said before going to sit down at the table with his son, immediately digging in to the stew as Thorunn came over to sit with the two men, as the dragons dug in to their own separate breakfast over near the fire.

"Its nothing sir, I'm used to cooking every morning for myself, I could do this every morning to make sure you both have a good breakfast before work." Thorunn offered as the two men continued to scarf down their food, loving more and more having Thorunn with them now.

"We might just have to keep ya a little longer than, young lass. If not just for Hiccup here." Stoick said, clapping a hand on Hiccup's shoulder with a knowing smile at his son before frowning when his son choked on a piece of carrot, not having expected his father to speak like this when they were all trying to enjoy breakfast.

Stoick pounded on his son's back as Thorunn raised an eyebrow at the two. "Need to chew, Hiccup. Don't inhale." Thorunn teased slightly as he finally got his throat clear, glaring furiously at his father for causing that to happen.

"Don't glare at me, boy. I didn't tell you to swallow before chewing." Stoick replied, not even trying to hide his smirk since he knew what it was that made him choke. The damned boy was still too afraid to make his move on the young lass. He would hope, being a Haddock, that he'd have more balls on him. Unfortunately, it seemed like he was never going to move though.

Hiccup turned his attention back to his food instead, catching Thorunn's worried look though before continuing to eat a bit more carefully though this time.

When the men were done, Thorunn quickly took their bowls to go wash, Stoick enjoying more and more having Thorunn around since she seemed to enjoy the life of being a housewife.

Even if Hiccup still didn't have the nerve to even tell her how he felt for her.

Hiccup frowned as he watched Thorunn begin to clean up after him and his father. He knew she felt like she needed to do something to make up for them letting her and her dragons stay on Berk with them, but he didn't like how she wanted to wait on them like a maid.

Thorunn was in the process of cleaning the bowls in a wash bucket when she felt a hand on the small of her back, almost whirling around to strike before recognizing who's large hand it was. "Yes, Hiccup?" Thorunn asked as she kept her eyes on cleaning the bowls for the men.

"You don't need to be doing all of this, Thorunn." Hiccup reminded the girl as he resisted his urge to wrap his arms around her. Every time he got near her, aside from sharing his bed, he kept getting the urge to hold her like he had days ago. To hold her in his arms, pull her into his embrace, hold her hand, anything that meant he would get to have contact with her.

But, he was fighting these urges every time even as they grew stronger because he didn't want to scare her off or ruin what nice life they had for the moment together. All he could do was barely lay his hand on her now, even though he knew she nuzzled up into his neck last night when they were in bed.

"Hiccup, I really don't mind it. It's the least I can do. I don't want to just be a burden here." Thorunn replied as she finished rinsing the bowls off, grabbing a rag to dry her hands as Hiccup reached around her and moved her work out of her reach. "Hiccup..." Thorunn began to protest as she turned to face him, looking up at him and actually hating that he has a few inches on her then since it's hard to look threatening when the other person is taller.

"Thorunn..." Hiccup mimicked her tone, not wanting her working when it was his decision to keep her here at his house where he knew she would be safe. He smirked down at her when she tried to whack him on the shoulder, but thanks to his leather armor he didn't feel a thing.

"Gah, you're so stubborn!" Thorunn threw her hands up in defeat, turning to storm away but Hiccup's hands caught her hips before he knew what he was doing, dragging her back in to him.

Resisting his every urge, Hiccup let go of her and instead leaned forward. "You don't need to do a thing, Thorunn. I told you I'd take care of you, so don't worry." Hiccup murmured quietly to Thorunn before she pulled away finally, fighting the blush that rose when he took her by the hips and pulled her into his space.

"I'm going to go for a walk with Zu." Thorunn advised Hiccup before heading for the door, door shutting quietly behind her as she left.

Hiccup sighed, fingertips still tingling with the feel of her hips against them before turning to go back to his room and work on sketch he'd been working on for days now.

Thorunn smiled as Zu hovered above her protectively as they walked. Right now, she was supposed to be getting some supplies from the market to use for lunch and dinner tonight for the Haddocks. But, it was a bit hard when Zu growled and threatened to charge anyone who tried to touch her or walk over to her.

"Zu, I'm fine boy. We're safe." Thorunn reminded the older dragon as he looked down at her, knowing that for the moment they could be safe but unwilling to let his guard down with her. She was his trainer and he would protect her with his life.

Even if that other boy was going to try to take his job from him by trying to keep Thorunn to himself.

"How's about a nice juicy snapper?" Thorunn offered as she walked over to the stall where the fishermen dropped off their fish each day.

At the mention of fish, Zu's head snapped up. He may be her protector, but even a guard dragon can't resist some fresh snapper. The dragon stopped a few feet behind Thorunn as she paid for the fish, tail swishing behind him as she tossed the fish into the air, letting him roast it for a second before swallowing the fish.

Thorunn rolled her eyes at how Zu had to roast the fish before eating it, turning to go continue grabbing some stuff for tonight for the two men back at the house.

Zu licked his lips before following after Thorunn.

The two continued on their business for a little while, unaware the whole time that there was a dragon watching them from nearby everywhere they went.

Soon Thorunn was swinging by Gobbers to get pick some things up for Hiccup's flight vest. She hadn't told the man yet, but she was working on improving it to ensure it withheld his heavier weight. Originally, she had made it to her weight since she's lighter than him.

But being that he's a strong, muscular viking, she had to make sure it could hold him and not let him plummet should he actually use it again, since he hasn't used it since they went flying together. "Ah, Thorunn. I was beginning to think ya gave up on working." Gobber mused as she walked in.

"No, Hiccup likes to keep an eye on me to make sure I'm safe." Thorunn said as she went to gather some of the things she already had made in the back of the workshop for Hiccup's vest, knowing he would be a bit frustrated since she would have to go back to her old house to put the vest together, since today he was at the house with Toothless and Dusk.

"Ah, got ya a protective man there. Nice catch." Gobber teased lightly, winking at Thorunn when she looked at him like he was crazy.

"Gobber, we're not together. We're just friends." Thorunn reminded the old blacksmith before grabbing her things to go work on the man's vest.

"Ah, so you say now. Maybe you should ask around what some of the other vikings think, lass." Gobber's voice called after her as she left, surprising the girl since she didn't talk to anyone other than him, the Haddocks and Astrid if they were near one another.

Trying not to think too hard about what Gobber was telling her, Thorunn began to head back towards her old house as Zu grumbled, not liking playing storage dragon since she was using his saddle bags to put all the stuff for tonight inside of.

"Oh you won't be carrying everything for long, Zu." Thorunn reminded the dragon as they headed towards the house. Thorunn shoved the door open easily, since obviously Hiccup did a bad job of trying to board it and make it look like no one had lived there in a long time.

Eyes watched the human and her dragon walk into the house, grumbling angrily before moving in for the attack.

Thorunn hummed softly as Zu stood his guard near the door to her old room, watching as she replaced the leather bindings with metal spokes, looking much happier now that she was doing something to keep herself occupied.

Zu watched her for a few more seconds before a sound hit his ears. Almost like a dragon was shooting fireballs. He didn't get a chance to stand up before the house shoot when a blast ripped into the ceiling. Thorunn was knocked over with the hit, unsure what just happened.

Zu lunged towards Thorunn was the onslaught continued. He knew this was going to happen, he knew he couldn't let his guard down. Throwing himself over the teen as the building caught fire, he let out a roar in warning before feeling Thorunn latch herself to his wing, throwing her to his saddle quickly.

Before he could throw himself through the nearest wall, a large mass fell through the roof, dragon and viking tumbling down with him as Zu let out a furious roar at the two in knowing these were the attackers. Without a seconds hesitation, he charged.

Hiccup had been on his way to Gobbers to see if the Blacksmith had seen his house guest when he saw one of the villagers flying fast through the village on a Grapple Grounder. Normally, he would ignore the people who flew around on their dragons. It was Berk, there were dragons everywhere.

But for some reason he found his eyes following the dragon.

Right up until the point when it let a Pulse Blast loose that slammed right into the roof of Thorunn's old house.

He took off running before anyone else in the village even knew what was going on, yelling for Toothless since the male Night Fury had been bouncing around and enjoying the cooler whether with him.

His eyes widened in horror when he saw the Grapple Grounder letting blasts loose all over the house, setting it ablaze in a matter of seconds, before dragon and rider fell through the room.

His fears were confirmed when he heard Zu's unmistakable roar come from the now burning house.

The Grapple Grounder dodged the massive Boneknapper as it lunged, viking pulling his sword from his sheath as his eyes searched the smoking house for the girl he was supposed to kill.

His eyes focused through the smoke, seconds before a black sword swung at him, barely dodging in time as Thorunn appeared through the smoke, leaping over the attacker and kicking his legs out like she had practiced many times with Zu.

Only difference, this time it was life or death so she couldn't go easy on this man.

"Drop your sword! Your name is out all over for a bounty! If you drop it I'll let you live and escort you without a mark back to Gunnar island." Thorunn felt her temper spark as the viking tried to bargain with her over taking her to Gunnar island. To her father.

"You'll have to kill me if you ever want to take me to that family killing bastard." Thorunn growled before lunging, sword slamming down onto the man's own as he fought back, dragons slamming through walls and fighting nearby.

"Fine, should have never come back here. No one else may wanna take your bounty, but I will." Thorunn dodged as the man tried to slice at her neck with his sword, fire beginning to descend from the roof now as the smoke thickened.

The man tried to see where his prize had gone, but within seconds he was pinned as a support beam fell on him from above. He let out a cry of surprise, crying out for his dragon, but the dragon was pinned himself now by the Boneknapper.

Thorunn appeared through the smoke though, eyes full of rage at this man whom wanted to turn her life over for quick money from her father. "Get...me out of here." The man plead, knowing that the girl was often seen helping other villagers.

"Why should I? You wanted to kill me for money. Turn me over to a man who slaughters families for fun. Who wants to slaughter this village and burn this island to the ground if he knew I was here. Tell me, why should I help a man who wants to help that?" Thorunn asked furiously as she hefted her sword over her head, ready to end this fight.

The house shook, a loud creaking sounding as Zu realized that it was going to fall. With a roar, he threw himself at the girl as the house fell, Grapple Grounder and viking letting out a horrified scream as they were caught beneath.

Hiccup felt his heart sink as the house fell in front of him, feeling himself run forward but he was met with a stronger force catching him as his father prevented the boy from running into the falling building and killing himself. "Let me go!" Hiccup yelled as he struggled in his grip, needing to protect Thorunn like he had promised.

"Hiccup, that building is falling still and burning, you'll be killed too if you run in to it!" Stoick yelled to the boy as he held him back, not liking just sitting there and watching but knowing that until the whole thing was on the ground, they could do nothing.

Finally, the building was fully on the ground, and Hiccup was about to charge into the burning rubble when something began to shove it's way out of the rubble. "Thorunn!" Hiccup yelled after the girl, his father still restraining him as they saw the Grapple Grounder force it's way out of the rubble, letting out a weak cry as it held it's viking in it's jaws.

The Grapple Grounder worked it's way out of the rubble before collapsing feet from the still burning rubble, viking going rolling across the ground as he let out a pained groan, burns and gashes marking his skin.

Stoick shoved his son into his brother's grip, to ensure that he wouldn't do anything brash, before storming forward to grab the man before he had a chance to either get away or die. The viking looked up before cowering in fear at the sight of Stoick the Vast approaching him with an enraged look.

Hiccup broke from Spitelout's grip easily, charging towards the house to find Thorunn. "Thorunn!" Hiccup called out again in hopes that she'd call back to him, Toothless and Dusk moving in to try to search for the girl and her dragon.

Thorunn opened her eyes slowly, expecting to feel severe pain. Instead, she felt a heavy body above her, looking up to see Zu above her. "Zu...Zu wake up." Her throat felt on fire from the smoke still swirling around them.

The dragon let out a little grumble in response to his human's voice, beginning to come to as he realized they were buried beneath the rubble that was once their house. He began to thrash, but Thorunn quickly leaned up to calm him.

"It might collapse more, Zu. You need...to be careful." Thorunn explained, covering her mouth as she began to cough from the heavy black smoke that swirled around them.

Fortunate for the fire breathing dragon, he was unaffected. But he needed to get his charge out of here. He needed to protect her.

"Thorunn!" Zu's ears caught the sound of the girl's admirer, trying to let out a roar but even this amount of smoke and the strain of the rubble above him made it come out quieter than normal.

"Zu, we need to get out of here." Thorunn reminded the dragon, forcing herself onto her stomach so she could try to work her way out from under his body. Unfortunately, there was rubble on all sides, preventing her from doing anything.

Zu attempted to let out another roar, attempting to flex one of his wings but only moving the rubble up for a second before it fell back down on to his wings.

Toothless and Dusk had been examining inside of the rubble, since they weren't effected by the smoldering messes like Hiccup, when they heard a weak roar from beneath them, something pushing up on them as Dusk shoved Toothless to the side.

Jumping once on the spot, another roar sounded, before the female let out a cry to the dragon beneath her to let him know they knew he was down there.

Toothless immediately began digging, Dusk following quick as the villagers nearby noticed the sight, Hiccup almost dashing into the burning mess until Snotlout caught him this time by his father's orders. "You really want to be burned alive, idiot?" Snotlout asked as he tried to restrain his cousin, but he just kept fighting back.

"Thorunn's under there! I'm not going to leave her in there!" Hiccup yelled back at his cousin as he continued trying to get away, knowing he wouldn't understand since he only wanted to bed the girl, he never truly cared about her like he does.

"And she's not going to be very happy if you run in there and burn yourself moments from death just for her! We both know this Hiccup, you need to wait." Snotlout snapped right back, not afraid of his cousin even if he was in a panic like right now.

"How would you know? I promised her I would protect her! I need to protect her right now by getting her out!" Hiccup snapped as he pulled himself from Snotlout's grip, glaring furiously at the brute for preventing him from rescuing Thorunn.

"You can't get her out if you die, Hiccup! She needs you, you need her, but neither of you can have that if you don't wait right now. The dragons are working to get her out, and they'll bring her to you." Snotlout explained as carefully as he could, since while he wasn't afraid of Hiccup, he knew when he started balling his fists he was going to start trying to break his nose.

Dusk and Toothless continued digging through the rubble until finally they hit white, Dusk knocking her nose against it only to smile when Zu let out a growl of protest. Dusk cried out to Toothless to let him know that Zu and Thorunn were right there, the male dashing over and beginning to help her uncover the large Boneknapper.

Before long, Zu forced his wings out as the rubble lightened on top of him, knocking the Night Fury's flying as he shakily stood up, looking down at the now wheezing girl that was beneath him.

Thorunn had her vest over her mouth and nose to try to stop the smoke from getting into her lungs, but she was still wheezing and her lungs burning in protest with each breath she took.

Thorunn looked up when she felt Zu's mouth clamp lightly over her shirt, watching as he jumped into the air and clear of the rubble before collapsing against the ground once clear of the burning rubble that was once a safe place for them.

Thorunn hit the ground hard when Zu did, her back slamming into the ground and sending her into another coughing fit as they finally were out of the thick of the smoke.

Her eyes fluttered shut as her coughing proceeded, seeing the two Night Fury's before darkness settled over her.

Next time Thorunn woke up, she felt warmth beside her, snuggling into the warmth as she always did when her and Zu would lay together. Her eyes flicked open though when she heard a soft voice, taking a moment for her vision to clear before seeing Hiccup beside her. "Thank the gods." Hiccup's voice cracked.

Was he hurt, upset? Thorunn didn't get much more thoughts than that as the man pulled her tight into his embrace, so glad she was awake since earlier his own father told him they were going to spread word that she was dead. He didn't want to believe it, that's why he put her in his bed and hadn't left her since.

"What...happened? Where's Zu?" Thorunn's throat still burned, but not as bad as when she woke beneath the rubble of her burning old house.

"He's downstairs resting. I'm more focused on you right now though, Thorunn." Hiccup murmured as he buried his face against Thorunn's temple, eyes shut to try to hold himself back from crying at how she wasn't dead like her father was trying to tell people.

"Hiccup...he was trying to take me back to Madguts." Thorunn's voice sound weak still, showing that the smoke of the fire was all that damaged her, since Zu reacted fast enough to cover her from the fire or debris.

"I know. He's in jail now. My father sat and questioned him for hours." Hiccup explained as Thorunn began to wonder how long she had really been out for this time. "He's going to try to spread word outside of Berk that you're dead." Hiccup revealed, shocking Thorunn that they would do something like that before it clicked.

"Your father knew I had a bounty on my head?" Thorunn asked quietly, trying to clear her throat since it still burned with the smoke inhalation, watching as Hiccup sat up and reached over, handing her a glass of water as she smiled at him.

"He knew. He was one of the few on Berk that did. Him, and the villager knew too because he had just come back from a fishing trip near Gunnar where he found out about the bounty. Now the whole village knows though, and they want him dead for trying to kill you." Hiccup explained as Thorunn drank the water he offered her, just then noticing how close he was to her.

She had her legs draped over his own, and his side was flush into her own. She hadn't noticed before, probably because of the burning in her throat over being buried with Zu.

"My father is going to spread word that you're dead. But it's going to be anonymous. Your father's never going to bother you ever again, Thorunn. You'll be safe now." Thorunn looked up at his eyes as his words finally sunk in.

Her father was going to be given word she was dead. The man was imprisoned, Hiccup was watching her closely.

She was finally safe.

Hiccup thought she was still weak from the fire. From the smoke in her lungs. He never would have expected her to throw herself into his arms. It was evident he wasn't expecting it since he had been on the very edge of the bed, so when her body hit the side of his own they both went backwards off the bed, Thorunn landing on top of him as he hit his head against the floor.

"Oww..." Hiccup mumbled as he laid there, trying to regain his senses before he felt fingers weave through his hair, opening his eyes to see Thorunn helping him lift his head.

"I am so sorry. I forget sometimes I can't do that with just everyone. I do that with Zu, but he's a big hulking dragon." Thorunn muttered as Hiccup noticed the elated, yet sorry look in her eyes over having injured him now.

"It's alright...I'm fine. I'm used to it with Toothless at this point." Hiccup advised before feeling Thorunn's hand find his belt again, wondering at this point why he still wore it when he knew she was going to keep using it to move him about.

"Come on, let me help you up." Thorunn offered, one hand on his belt while the other took his own hand to help him off the floor.

Electricity. Every time they touched it was electricity across his skin. He didn't know how much longer he was going to be able to take it. It felt so good, but at the same time bad because he knew he couldn't have her without risking messing things up.

Once he was up, he nudged Thorunn back towards the bed since her lungs still had smoke in them and he wanted her to rest. He ended up falling back with her though, since he forgot she had a grip on his belt. "Okay, let go of the belt now." Hiccup said upon falling onto the bed beside Thorunn, reaching down to pry her hands off of him.

Thorunn laughed instead, holding on tighter as Hiccup's thicker fingers tried to pry her own off his leather belt. "Why should I? It works pretty well to get you to move around." Thorunn mused as she smiled at Hiccup, deciding to prove how well it worked by shifting over onto her stomach.

Hiccup was confused at first, before letting out a grunt when instead Thorunn crawled up onto the bed, dragging him up onto his knees since she had him by the belt. "Okay, I'm never wearing this around you again, obviously." Hiccup commented as he looked down at her nimble fingers that refused to let go of the leather.

"Aww. But then I won't have anything to lead you around by." Thorunn whined playfully, rolling over onto her back as she smiled up at the teen who did so much for her.

He couldn't hold back the smile that worked its way on to his own face at the sight of her smiling even after what happened yesterday to her. "Well, quit leading me by my lap then. That's not a very smart move to do to a teen viking, Thorunn." Hiccup reminded the girl, surprised by how bold he was getting now and expecting her to swat him.

Instead, Thorunn burst out laughing. He shouldn't be surprised though. She knew nothing about men, he knew that all too well. Especially when she saw him in his undershorts one day and was confused as to why he was so embarrassed.

"Getting a bit cocky again, Hiccup. I know your friend Tuffnut and Snotlout like to talk about what they have down there, but didn't think you would." Thorunn advised, pointing a finger towards his lap as he felt a blush rise before hearing her words about Tuffnut and Snotlout.

"Wait...they were talking about stuff like that with you?" Hiccup asked, not meaning to sound so defensive, but Thorunn smiled at his reaction.

"Hiccup, are you jealous that I'm talking to other people than just you all the time?" Thorunn asked, giggling when he finally got her hands off his belt and got off the bed, turning away from her.

"What? Me, jealous?" His voice rose as he asked it right back, trying to deny it but the way his voice rose kept Thorunn from believing him as she giggled again at how he was acting.

Hiccup was going to walk away, both to prove he wasn't jealous and to let Thorunn rest more, but unfortunately her hands found his belt again, dragging him right back to the edge of the bed.

"I may not know emotions, or humans, that well. But, I can tell when someone's jealous because I talk with other people." Thorunn advised, smiling when Hiccup rolled his eyes at her. "I think it's sweet though. My big protector." Thorunn mused, releasing Hiccup's belt willingly this time so she could lay back down.

Hiccup smiled initially as she mentioned his jealousy being sweet. But his smile vanished with the big protector comment. He'd heard her use it before when talking to Zu. He didn't want to be like Zu. He wanted to protect her, but he wanted to be more to her than just a protector.

Thorunn leaned up when she noticed Hiccup's demeanor change. "Hey, you okay?" Thorunn asked quietly as Hiccup looked between her and the door on the other side of the room, knowing he needed to let her rest.

"Yeah...you should rest more. You've got a lot of smoke in your lungs." Hiccup said, stepping forward to nudge her back onto the bed, but her hand reached out and pulled him back with her.

Hiccup was shocked at first, but Thorunn held a pleading look in his eyes that he couldn't resist. Once she was comfortable, he laid down with her until she fell asleep.

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**Just an all around sweet chapter, huh? Well...sort of. If not for the whole Viking trying to claim the bounty thing. Anyways, thanks for reading as always! Trying to keep up right now but slowing down a bit since I've been sick the past two days. Gonna keep writing though, so I hope some of yall review as well. Thanks again for reading though!**


	18. Snoggletog

**Greetings once more readers! Not much to say this time because I'm way behind on my writing, so I'll let you get right back to reading while I keep writing. Enjoy and please review!**

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This was the part of the year he dreaded the most. The weather started getting colder than normal, things got more busy since Snoggletog was right around the corner, and all the viking couples who had been engaged during the year started to decided to come to his family for blessings and to ask them to host their wedding parties.

That, and all the dragons flew off to lay their eggs.

Right now, Hiccup was busy trying to make a gift for Thorunn though. That, and hide from all the people wanting his blessings now since he was the chief in training. "How's it coming, lad?" Gobber asked, popping his head in to the teen's workshop in the back of his blacksmith building.

"I think...I need a little more...metal." Hiccup murmured before turning away from his gift for Thorunn to go get what he needed.

Gobber scratched his head with his hook, wondering why the boy was so set on this strange gift for Thorunn. Though, he guessed he really couldn't blame the lad. In the two months that she'd been living with him and Stoick, he noticed him growing closer and closer with the girl.

He just wondered when it was that he would tell her he was falling in love with her.

After all, they did share a room together now. Last time he came over in the wee hours of the morning he found them both in the same bed, beneath the same fur blanket, perfectly fine together. Well, until they woke up. Then the lad jumped out of bed like he'd been caught in the worse situation ever.

Hiccup came back with the metal that he needed and went right back to work as Gobber went and stood behind him once more. "When ya gonna tell the pretty lass ya love her, lad?" Gobber got straight to the point this time, since now that she was living fully with him, he'd hope he'd tell her.

"Gobber, not now with this." Hiccup didn't even blush anymore when Gobber would start this conversation with him. It was overdone by now. The Blacksmith knew he didn't want to risk his friendship with Thorunn.

"Lad, if you don't, someone else will. Ya know, she is a pretty little dame. Snotlout almost got her, some other viking might come alone soon." Gobber grinned when he gave an exceptionally hard smack with his hammer onto the metal, cracking it in two over his words.

"Gobber, she doesn't like me that way, so why would I ruin our friendship by telling her I'm falling in love with her?" Hiccup asked as he turned around to face the blacksmith.

"Because ya wouldn't. Because everyone in the village sees ya two, and knows the bond ya have with one another. They say how cute ya two are, how they're waiting to see when you'll grow the backbone to ask her, since ya know as well as I that she's not going to since she knows nothing about relationships. Ya two make me glad I never married." Gobber said as he turned to go grab the teen more metal for his gift.

Hiccup groaned, knowing that this was going to keep going on all day since Gobber's been doing this once every few days now since he found out that Thorunn slept in the same bed as him.

Down the street, four girls were seated around a fire pit in the now cleared area that once held Thorunn's house. "So, what're you guys planning for Snoggletog?" Astrid asked the other two viking women that were sitting around the fire.

"What's Snoggletog again? Hiccup's mentioned it, but he's been so busy he hasn't told me what it is." Thorunn said, leaning back against Dusk who was laying behind her with a barrel full of fish spilled over in front of her.

Astrid and Tuffnut looked at the girl in shock. She didn't know what Snoggletog was? Had she lived in a cave her whole life until now?

"You're joking, right?" Tuffnut asked, but the curious look that was still held in Thorunn's emerald green eyes was answer enough.

"It's a holiday around here. It's where all the dragons go off to lay their eggs, then come back with their babies and we exchange gifts, have parties, and just spend time with our families." Astrid explained to Thorunn, surprised that she had never heard of it before.

"Exchange gifts?" Thorunn asked quietly, since while she's been with Hiccup and Stoick he hasn't once let her do anything as thanks for letting her be there.

"Yeah, like you could give one to Hiccup." Astrid explained, punching Ruffnut when the girl made kissing noises at the mention.

"He wouldn't let me." Thorunn muttered, leaning back further in to Dusk at the mention. The two other girls looked at her in confusion as to what she meant. "I've tried to do simple things for him and Stoick. He leaves his room a mess, I try to clean up for him. They skip breakfast to go right to work, I make breakfast and lunch to make sure they eat enough. Every time though he doesn't seem like he likes that I'm trying to be helpful." Thorunn explained as she ran her fingers through her messy hair.

Astrid and Ruffnut exchanged looks before turning to Thorunn with matching knowing smiles. "Have you asked him why he's being like that?" Ruffnut asked, smile growing when she shook her head. "Just like with you, huh Astrid?" Ruffnut asked the other blonde as Thorunn looked between them in confusion.

"Hiccup doesn't like it when someone waits on him." Astrid began, since she learned that lesson back when they first became a couple. "It makes him feel useless. He likes to be the one helping others, not receiving help." Thorunn was confused at first before it sunk in. They really were a lot alike. She didn't want his help initially, but she had to give in when things went bad.

"Then...what do I do? I want to give him something for Snoggletog. As a thank you for everything he's done for me and my dragons." Thorunn said as she reached back and scratched Dusk under the chin, smiling at the Night Fury as she flipped over onto her stomach, wanting more.

Ruffnut dawned a devious look on her face. "Well I know what you could _do_ for him..." Ruffnut cut short with an ow when Astrid punched her again, knowing where her friend was going with that.

"What?" Thorunn asked, unsure if it was good or bad since Astrid punched Ruffnut before she could finish what she was saying.

"Ignore her. Just...you can't ask someone for an idea. It has to be something from the heart." Astrid explained, holding her hand over her heart for emphasis.

"I think you forget that she doesn't know how to listen to her heart after living with dragons." Ruffnut grumbled quietly to Astrid, dodging this time when she tried to punch the twin again.

"From...my heart?" Thorunn asked, looking down since she'd been ignoring her heart for a while now since it was telling her to do things that made her fearful of mistake again.

Astrid saw the worry etch across Thorunn's face first, knowing that her and Hiccup were close, and obviously wanting to be closer, but both were obviously fearful of that idea. "If it comes from the heart, he'll love it no matter what Thorunn." Astrid advised as Thorunn looked up at her.

Thorunn's eyebrows knitted together for a moment, before deciding to ask them for some ideas on what would be proper for Snoggletog.

Toothless bounded happily through the streets in search of his mate, loving this time of season. All the other dragons were heading off to lay their eggs. But Night Fury's didn't lay eggs at this time.

In fact, he had no idea when they did. He just knew from the past few years that they didn't since he never felt the urge to go off to the island where eggs were lain.

Though, he never had a mate until now. They hadn't even consummated yet, to solidify their status. But really, they never had the chance. With the stress about their humans, chance never arose for them to do more than snuggle at night and help out during the day.

Though, that was part of the reason right now why Toothless was off in search of his mate. He wanted to spend some time with her. Alone. Knowing her, she wouldn't want to consummate yet more than likely, but that didn't mean they couldn't go for a run through the snow and cuddle up later near a nice warm fire.

He never really realized just how much he liked this time of season until now.

Hiccup sighed as he finally got most of Thorunn's gift done. He only had a little more to go on it, then it would be done. "Well, hello pretty little dame. Lookin' for ya ol' sour puss?" Hiccup yelped, shoving the gift behind things quickly as he heard Gobber talking, knowing right away from the dame comment it was Thorunn.

"I'm just bringing you both something to drink, Gobber." Thorunn reminded, pulling the tray that held the drinks for the men off of Dusk's back since she was kind enough to help her.

"Astrid didn't help you with that, did she?" Gobber asked carefully, smiling when he saw the confused look dawn on the poor girl's face. "Ah, how sweet. Quiet a girl you got, Hiccup. Might steal her from time to time." Gobber teased his apprentice as he took the mug that Thorunn had offered him.

Hiccup came out of his little workshop, wiping soot and grease off on a rag as he glared at Gobber to warn him to not continue with the teasing.

Gobber chugged the mug as Hiccup walked up beside him. "What's this for?" Hiccup asked, not having expected Thorunn to come around today since she was spending time with Astrid and Ruffnut last he had seen.

"Well, you've both been in here working for hours. Only fair if someone brings you a drink." Thorunn replied with a shrug, even though her intentions were also to try to sweeten Hiccup up a little about her helping out.

"Better her than Astrid with her Yaknog." Gobber grumbled to his apprentice before passing Thorunn back his now empty mug. "I have to say, that was a mighty nice surprise, little lass. Thank you very much." Gobber gave her a smile before turning to go back to his own work.

"Thorunn, you didn't have to..." Hiccup cut short with a grunt as the mug meant for him was shoved to his lips, silencing him as Thorunn stuck her tongue out at him in triumph before watching him willingly drink. "Thank you." Hiccup said once the mug was empty, unable to deny that it actually much better than the Yaknog Astrid pushed on him every year.

That stuff nearly made him vomit every time.

"Maybe now you'll stop being a Mr. Sour Puss. Oh, and by the way, thanks for not telling me what Snoggletog was." Thorunn said as she put the mug back on the tray, back to Hiccup as he paled. He meant to tell her, but every time he tried he got dragged of by someone to do something for them.

"I was going to tell you tonight what it was, I've just been too busy." Hiccup explained as Thorunn faced him again, rolling her eyes since she knew that excuse already. He'd come home, eat, then go to bed like he's been doing for the past week. Not actually tell her.

"Well, Astrid and Ruffnut told me what it is. They want to take me out and teach me all the traditions tonight." Thorunn revealed, Dusk chortling behind her as she swatted her to keep her quiet.

Hiccup looked between the two girls, unsure if he should believe her at first since when this little show popped up, it meant Thorunn was up to something. But seeing as how he had her gift to finish, he decided not to question it. "Try not to pick any fights, or get yourself hurt." Hiccup replied, smiling when Thorunn rolled her eyes at him.

"Thank you, Zu. I'll do just that." Thorunn teased back, since she knew it made him mad when she compared him with Zu. He attempted to swat her, but she quickly dodged and leaned in instead to nuzzle his scruffy jaw line, since she knew that she couldn't use her time to play around a little more with him.

Thorunn was a bit surprised when she heard a deep chuckle find it's way out of his chest instead, yelping when he pinched her side as she tried to flee. "Don't tease me, and then I won't pinch you next time." Hiccup reminded as the girl rolled her eyes at him before going over and jumping up onto Dusk's saddle.

"Go back to work, sour puss. I'll see you at home." Thorunn said before Dusk took off running down the street, Hiccup watching them go for a little longer than needed before turning to go back into the blacksmith.

"See, that's why you should tell her. Maybe then you'd have gotten a sweet kiss from ya lass." Hiccup groaned as he passed his master, realizing that this was going to be a long day.

"He didn't put up as much of a fight as I thought he would." Thorunn advised the two girls as they walked around the shops in the village, in search of things for the Snoggletog party in a few days and a viking wedding that would have the whole village attending as well the day after the party.

"Well, you just have to be firm with him. He's like a dragon, you have to be tough, don't back down. Then he'll understand." Astrid explained as Thorunn laughed as she knew just how much like a dragon her friend was. He sure was enjoying his flight suit when he actually got to use it, she knew that for sure.

"Wait, does he know about tonight?" Ruffnut asked, Thorunn shaking her head in response.

"I just told him that you two were going to teach me about Snoggletog. It wasn't really a lie. Not like you telling me to tell him I was going to go hang decorations with Snotlout." Thorunn said as the three girls looked down the street where the teen in question was trying to hang shields on the building with Hookfang, but the Monstrous Nightmare was being more of a hindrance than a help.

"It would have riled him up. He get's jealous over who gets to talk with his OW!" Ruffnut let out a yell again when Astrid shoved her into a stall, smiling innocently at Thorunn since the girl didn't need to be hearing that Hiccup and her should get together from them.

It was their choice, they didn't need to be pressured.

"Anyways, let's see about finding some dresses. And no, Ruffnut you can't put spikes on it." Astrid reminded Ruffnut, smirking when the other blonde whined in protest since spikes supposedly made everything better.

"I've never worn a dress in my life, I don't really know what to be looking for." Thorunn reminded the two as they searched around. Everything she saw looked either too big, too small, too flashy or too lifeless. She couldn't choose.

"Try looking for one that has your favorite color. Ooh this one would be perfect for you Ruffnut!" Astrid exclaimed, passing off the dress to her friend as Ruffnut, for once, agreed to the girly statement, even though she knew she really didn't need a dress.

The whole dress thing was more for Thorunn than it was for them. But, that was because they were trying to make her seem more irresistible to the incompetent man she was living with.

Even if she herself didn't know that they were setting her up to make him fall harder.

"How does she not see yet?" Ruffnut asked Astrid quietly as they watched Thorunn continue to search for her dress.

"She's more in tune to dragons, not humans Ruffnut. Besides, Hiccup's a bit at fault here too for how he's reacting as well. Especially after the whole break down a few weeks ago." Astrid reminded Ruffnut, the girl shrugging her agreement since that was a bit of an ugly little fallout until they finally made up.

"How's this one?" Thorunn's voice broke them from their conversation as they turned to see the dress she had picked. Both girl's eyes widened, before turning to one another with face splitting grins.

"Yeah, he's gonna love that one." Ruffnut mused before they shuffled Thorunn off to have her go try it on.

Once all that was done, the girls set about their next task, passing Thorunn off all the things she needed before sending her on back to her house to set up.

Toothless grumbled happily as Dusk purred beneath him, the two laying in their bed right now as they listened to Thorunn work on something for Hiccup downstairs. They had to go down every so often to help her warm something, but other than that they were being given some alone time to snuggle in bed on this chilly day.

Dusk nuzzled her face up into Toothless's chin, tongue flickering out at his scales as his wing tightened around her. The male was laying on his side, so Dusk was snug up against his belly with his legs underneath him and wing covering her.

Toothless opened one eye, having been lazily laying his head against the side of the bed, to look down at his cuddly mate, giving his signature grin to her before leaning his head down, catching her lips with his own in their attempt at a human's kiss.

They didn't do it often anymore, mainly because Hiccup threw a fit when he came home one night and found them like that in bed, but it still felt nice to do it every once in a while.

Toothless loved showing Dusk how much he cared about her. He'd protect her with his life as he does Hiccup. She's his mate, and one day if they ever planned on it, might even be the mother to his hatchling.

Dusk purred quietly as she realized Toothless was thinking about other things, pushing her paw into his abdomen to remind him that they couldn't do that here. The male whimpered, wanting to prove to her his undying love, but she leaned up instead and pressed her forehead to his own.

Reluctantly, Toothless laid back down with Dusk as she snuggled back in to his side, hoping that something can distract the humans soon so they can have their chance at romance.

Hiccup stumbled up the stairs tiredly, box tucked under his arm and tied tight to ensure Thorunn didn't try to get in to it. He tiredly shoved the door open, only to be met with amazing smells and silence. It's never this quiet.

Hiccup walked over to the table where the smells was coming from to find a note next to a plate with food and drink for him. Sitting down, he began to eat first before picking up the note.

_Hiccup_

_I would have thought you'd be home by now, but I'm giving you a little surprise tonight. I made you a nice hearty dinner, and there's also a warm bath ready for you in the back since you were covered in soot and grime last I saw you. I hope you enjoy your surprise._

_Thorunn_

Hiccup couldn't help the smile that rose with what Thorunn had done for him. She did things around the house often for them, and he kept trying to tell her that she didn't need to. But this one, he had to appreciate it since it looked like she put a lot of effort into it.

After eating and washing up, Hiccup carefully trimmed his beard, wondering while he was doing so if Thorunn was already asleep upstairs. The past few nights when he came home late, she'd still be up waiting for him. But tonight, he was up a bit later than normal since she left him this nice surprise.

The least he could do is shave like he's doing right now, since she told him yesterday how his facial hair was getting so messy that he looked like one of the traders that came from Europe. He knew it was a joke, but he still wanted to look a bit better since she put in the effort to make sure he was well fed and clean before bed.

After finally finishing and changing downstairs in case Thorunn was actually still asleep upstairs, he finally headed up to crawl in with her. The room was dark already, so he figured she was asleep, moving over to his desk to try to hide her gift before coming to bed.

After hiding the box under a bunch of his papers and some of his invention ideas, he turned to go join the caring woman in bed. Unfortunately, though it was a good night something just had to go wrong. As he turned, his prosthetic caught on the chair, sending him tumbling over head first on to the ground, groaning in pain after a few seconds.

Green eyes met him through what little light came in through the window, giving a weak smile up at her at how he managed to be a klutz even when the room was clean. "You okay?" Thorunn asked quietly as she knelt down to help the man up, wondering why he was on the other side of the room in the first place.

"I'm fine, just tripped and hurt my pride a bit." Hiccup mumbled as Thorunn helped him sit up, checking his head for him to make sure he was okay.

"You really have some ways of waking people, Hiccup." Thorunn teased lightly before taking his hand to lead him safely to the bed.

"Ha ha, very funny. It's not like I did it on purpose." Hiccup reminded as he watched Thorunn's silhouette as she crawled back up onto the bed, waiting until she was comfortable before crawling in himself.

Hiccup felt his heart begin pounding against his chest when Thorunn rolled over, nuzzling her face against the crook of his neck. She never actually snuggled up to him at night. Most of the time it just happened as they were sleeping.

"Well, I see you shaved." Thorunn's sleepy voice mumbled against his neck as she decided to go a bit dragon on him, nipping his jaw line where his beard was now scratchy stubble once more, smiling more when she felt him go stiff at her actions.

She had never gotten like this with him before. This was a completely different game, as apposed to her just teasing him by nuzzling his neck for a few seconds to mock their own dragons. Now, her lips actually met his flesh for seconds before pulling the skin, making his skin feel like it was on fire, but wanting more.

He had to control himself. This was not a good situation. He was relaxed, thanks to the hot bath, but that didn't mean that if she kept this up he wouldn't have to go take a cold dip in a river. "Thank you, by the way, for all you set up for me tonight." Hiccup murmured as he pulled his neck out of her range, leaning down to press a kiss to her forehead as a thank you.

Thorunn felt her skin electrify with his touch, still unsure what to think of this when his lips met her skin and even more unsure why she wanted it to continue more. She really wished her mother's book had better explained these sorts of interactions with men, because she just got more and more confused every time he would kiss her on the forehead or the temple.

"You were overworked from what I saw earlier, it's the least I can do to help out." Thorunn murmured before giggling as she heard Toothless growl at them from over on their bed, warning them to be quiet so that they could sleep.

"We might want to go to bed, unless we want to wake up to smelly dragon morning breath in our faces." Hiccup mused as Thorunn just giggled more at the mention, since Toothless had done that to them a week ago and Hiccup jumped up so fast he ended up slipping on the blanket and falling right next to the bed.

That reminded her, it was his prosthetic he slipped with. Thorunn shifted a bit, leg brushing against the cold metal at the bottom of his leg as she realized he was beginning to nod off.

Hiccup was seconds from sleep when he felt Thorunn dive under the covers, jarring him awake a bit more before waking him completely as he felt her fingers find the bindings that connected his leg to his prosthetic. "Thorunn, what're you doing?" Hiccup asked as he pulled back the covers, looking down to see her blindly feeling about as he pulled the blanket off them fully to see her set on the bindings of his prosthetic.

"You got this caught and slipped last time, why not take it off as you sleep?" Thorunn asked, unable to see his face but able to feel his body stiffen at the idea.

"I'm fine, let's just sleep." Hiccup said quickly, rolling over onto his side to try to imply that he fell right to sleep.

Thorunn frowned at his avoidance, knowing it couldn't be comfortable to wear that thing to bed every night. But, sadly he more than likely wasn't going to budge.

"Fine...goodnight." Thorunn murmured quietly to him before moving back towards her side of the bed, grabbing the extra fur blanket that was at the end of the bed so she wouldn't brush up against his ice cold metal leg during the night.

Hiccup sighed, knowing when Thorunn wasn't happy by now, before reluctantly sitting up, reaching down to start removing the cold metal. That must be why she wanted it off, poor girl's not use to cold metal like he is. Setting the squeaky old prosthetic on the side of the bed, Hiccup laid back down, rolling over and taking the edge of Thorunn's blanket and slipping inside, throwing his own over both of them so she could stay snug and warm throughout the night.

Fortunate for the teen, he got a little kiss on his jaw for trying to be sweet before both finally fell asleep.

"Are you sure he'll like it?" She was nervous, she wasn't good at gifting humans. When it came to dragons, she just gave them food. That was their favorite thing was food. But, human's were so much more difficult.

"You've been working non-stop on it for him since you came up with the idea, Thorunn. He'll love it." Astrid assured as they stood amongst the cheerful vikings who were gathered in the Great Hall.

The dragons should be back any second with their babies, so everyone was excited. Fortunate for Thorunn and Hiccup, their Night Fury's didn't go off to lay eggs this year. They must not have had the time to try.

Right now though, Thorunn was standing around talking with Astrid and Ruffnut while she waited for Hiccup to show up. The teen's been hiding all day, so she hadn't had a chance to give him his gift at all and now the party was starting.

"Leave it to Hiccup to skip out on a party." Ruffnut commented, dodging Astrid's punch this time before the door to the Great Hall burst open, all the dragons and their babies rushing in as the vikings erupted into cheers and running around happily to meet the new babies.

Thorunn was watching the show when she felt a nudge on her lower back, looking back to see Toothless with a piece of parchment in his mouth. "Toothless, what you got there buddy?" Thorunn asked, before he handed off the parchment to her, nudging her to get her to open it and read what was on the inside.

Thorunn knew his handwriting by now was messy, but this time it looked like Hiccup was writing in a rush. He was letting her know he'd be a bit late, but she was expecting that already. It's Hiccup, after all. He's never where he needs to be at the right time.

Thorunn sighed before shoving the drool covered note back to Toothless, walking over to one of the many tables to sit down since it will obviously be a while before the one person she was on edge waiting for shows up.

She was about to try the mead when Astrid and Snotlout sat down at the table with her, each carrying one of their dragons new babies. "Hey, where's Hiccup?" Astrid asked upon noticing that the teen was still missing.

"He had Toothless bring me a note. He said his Dad has him grabbing some things for the party, so he'll be late." Thorunn muttered, chin resting in the palm of her hand as she looked down at the box on the table beside her that held her gift for the teen. A gift she didn't even know if she'd get to give tonight due to his busy schedule.

"See, that's why you have to drag him around or yell to him to get his butt over here. It works for Hookfang, and he's about as much dragon as Hiccup." Snotlout said as Hookfang's hatchling began to chew on his wrist guards and hang off of the teen.

"Ignore him. He's already gotten some of the mead." Astrid advised, shoving Snotlout away when he tried to lean over and give her a kiss for Snoggletog.

"I noticed. I'm thinking of doing the same and just going home at this point." Thorunn murmured, her spirits for this holiday down since, of all the vikings that were there, the one she wanted to see the most was not.

She didn't understand why it had to be him. Her mother's book told her she'd feel this way one day, but why him? He treats her like she's fragile, like one of his own dragons. Where as somewhere deep down she just wanted to be treated like she was actually special to him.

"What? No, Thorunn you went to all this trouble for him. Don't leave yet. He still needs to see that dress of yours too." Astrid reminded Thorunn, watching as she tugged at the cursed fabric that clung to her skin.

"By the way, might I say that dress looks lovely on you, beautiful." Snotlout piped in, yelling out when he instead found himself on his back on the floor seconds later as Astrid shoved him out of his chair for trying to hit on the girl who obviously wanted his cousin, not him.

"He probably won't even notice it. He's been so busy recently he barely says goodnight before bed." Thorunn murmured, Dusk walking up behind her with Toothless as the two dragons sat on their hind legs behind the teen.

Dusk continued to watch and listen to her trainer, but Toothless was distracted when he saw the door to the Great Hall open, Hiccup sneaking in quickly with a box tucked under his arm. Unfortunate for him, Toothless wasn't the only one who noticed his arrival.

"I'll be right back, just stay right here alright." Astrid advised Thorunn before standing from the table, walking off to go chastise Hiccup for leaving Thorunn waiting.

Hiccup had barely gotten some of the younger dragons off of him when a fist landed with his shoulder, causing him to stumble back in pain. "Ow why did you do that?!" Hiccup asked, rubbing his shoulder as he glared at Astrid for the attack.

"You're late." Astrid reminded him, obviously annoyed with him as usual.

"I know, I know. Just...where's Thorunn? I have something for her." Hiccup said, trying to step around Astrid but her hand grabbed his arm, yanking it back out of reflex from years of injuring him.

"No, no. You're not just going to go search for her. You'll wait right here, since you've already put her Snoggletog off to a bad start." Astrid advised Hiccup, shoving him back against the wall to make him stay and wait for her.

"Wha...what did I do?" Hiccup called after Astrid, beyond confused at the moment.

Hiccup was about to go find Thorunn himself, when he saw a pair of teens dancing. Wait...is that...

His eyes went wide when he saw Thorunn dancing with a highly inebriated Snotlout.

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**I'm sorry, I had to do the cliffhanger this time. Plus, it gives yall more reasons to review so I'll post the next chapter sooner. This chapter wasn't even planned, I just happened to be watching the clip on Netflix and an idea popped in on how to use it.**

**Anyways, thanks as always for reading! I hope you enjoyed it as much as I do writing it for all of you!**

**Oh, and in response to TGirl15 and your story idea, that actually sounds like a really good story that I could try. I'd just have to wait a bit since I try not to overwhelm myself with more than one story to write at a time.**

**Anyways, thank you all once more for reading!**


	19. Surprises

**Greetings once again readers! I'd like to begin by thanking those of you who reviewed recently. I noticed there's more people reviewing now, because yes I do read every last review received on this story. Actually, on all my stories. But anyways, I'll let you get right to reading since I put yall on a cliff hanger. Enjoy and don't forget to review!**

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He had never seen her wear a dress before, never thought she ever would willingly. But...that dress just...By the gods someone was doing this to torture him. She didn't agree to that willingly.

It made people see just how much she was with the dragons, since it was a black dress that looked almost like it could have been made of Night Fury scales, because every time the light caught on any part of it it would flare and turn a dark purple just like their dragon's scales.

It fit her so well, he was pretty sure every other viking in the room could see every curve, every bone, every muscle on her body, since it went all the way down to the floor, hugging her until her mid thigh. Gods knows, he could see her clear over here, and he already knew his blood was rushing down south as he watched her twirl and spin with his cousin who was holding her hand.

Wait, his cousin? His temper flared when he saw Snotlout drape his hands over Thorunn's hips, try to pull her to him. But she pulled out of his grip, and instead twirled around to chastise him for trying to lead her in to him.

Forget waiting for whatever Astrid was trying to do. Putting the box that he had just realized he was holding over his lap, obviously his body knew better than him to hide, on a nearby table, Hiccup strolled over in the direction of the two dancing vikings.

"Come on, it's not that hard. I'm trying to show you how to but I can't if you keep pushing me away." Snotlout reminded Thorunn as she put her hands on her hips, obviously annoyed since he had tried three times to lead her to his own body.

"Snotlout, you're drunk. You obviously don't know what you're doing." Thorunn advised as she pulled from his hands once more to go sit back down, not entirely sure how to dance but knowing enough to know his was more suggestive than proper.

"Come on, you have to admit it's better than sitting and waiting for someone who's not going to show up." Snotlout called after Thorunn, about to go retrieve her again when instead someone popped out of the crowd and caught her himself.

"I'm pretty sure I can take it from here, Snotlout." Hiccup called to his cousin, warning glare at him to let him know he saw him trying to seduce Thorunn, before focusing his attention on the beautiful girl he had nudged behind him.

Upon looking down at her dress again though, he was having second thoughts about swiping her away from Snotlout in the middle of a crowd of people who had known him since he was a child, since he couldn't keep his eyes off of her.

"You actually came?" Thorunn's voice carried up to him through the murmuring vikings that were watching them.

"I wasn't going to let you spend Snoggletog without me." Hiccup said with a smile down at the girl before leading her out of Snotlout's range, since his drunken cousin tried to swoop in again. He had her sit down at a table near the back where his gift for her was waiting. "I'm sorry I'm late." Hiccup apologized first, since he really had wanted to be here sooner, but his father kept making him run and grab things for the party, saying it was part of being chief and since he was in training it was his job.

"It's fine." Her voice was soft. Ah Thor, he knew he should have just come earlier since obviously she was a bit more than just disappointed with him. He reached a hand over the table, fingertips brushing against her own as he relished the shock that still rose every time they touched.

She looked up at him finally, and he frowned as he saw her try to hide the loneliness she had been feeling from being at this party without him. He was going to be spending all night just trying to make it up to her now. "Can I get you anything?" Hiccup asked first, glancing behind him towards the table where Snotlout and Tuffnut were hitting the mead pretty hard.

Poor single teens.

"I'm fine, Astrid's been having me try everything while we waited." Thorunn said, even though deep down the thing she really wanted was to just spend some time with the man across the table from her. The only time they were together was at night before bed, since every other time she saw him he was either in the blacksmith working, or he was doing planning and errands with his father.

"She didn't get you to try her Yaknog, did she?" Hiccup asked quickly, laughing when she just looked up at him in confusion.

"Why does everyone keep asking that? I haven't once seen her with anything like that." Thorunn said as Hiccup found himself admiring her more. The dress she was wearing, gods he couldn't get over it yet. He knew she was beautiful before, but now...

She's like a goddess right now.

He was surprised partly too though, because the one strap that went over her shoulder was on the side that didn't hide her scars on her chest. They peaked out of the black and purple fabric slightly on the other side.

"So...how's my dress?" Her voice dragged him out of his thoughts, causing him to look up to see she was looking down at the restriction on her body. "Astrid and Ruffnut said I needed a dress for tonight and tomorrow for that wedding. Is it good?" Thorunn asked before looking back up at Hiccup, surprised when she saw a look she'd never seen before in his eyes. At first, she thought he was going to put the dress off. But his fingertips found her own across the table.

"It looks amazing on you, Thorunn." His voice was thick as he spoke, it made her nervous slightly, but for some reason not in a bad way.

Astrid and Ruffnut held smirks on their faces from where they were sitting at their table not too far away. They could see clearly that Hiccup was definitely affected by their transformation of Thorunn, especially with how he could barely keep his eyes off of her.

"So, how long until he breaks?" Ruffnut asked, knowing that when they did this to Snotlout last year the brute broke and went running after both of them, even though they were just doing it for giggles and not for a real reason.

"I'll give him until midnight." Astrid said before realizing they needed to flee, since now Snotlout was heading their way.

"Uh, Thorunn left her gift for him at our table. You should probably bring it to her." Ruffnut reminded Astrid before raising a fist to Snotlout as he started to come towards them with mugs of mead in both hands for them.

Hiccup had just brought Thorunn back a drink when he noticed her watching the other vikings dance, almost looking lonely again before he remembered hearing her talking with Snotlout. She didn't know how. Odin knows, he can barely with his metal foot.

"Uh...Thorunn do you want to...you know join them?" Hiccup asked, giving a nod in the direction of the dancing vikings as he noticed her give a look down at his prosthetic.

"I'm fine, wouldn't want to bother you. You've been working all day anyways." Thorunn reminded, surprised when Hiccup instead took her hand in his, helping her up from her seat.

"It's fine, I'm used to being this busy. Besides, I want this to be a Snoggletog you remember and compare to every other one." Hiccup explained as he lead Thorunn towards the other dancing, cheerful vikings in the room. He couldn't have her feeling lonely, especially not when he's here now.

"Hiccup...wait." He tried to pull her hand from his, but he instead pulled her in to his chest, smiling down at her even if his heart felt like it was beating a mile a minute with her this close and wearing what she was on her beautiful body. "I...I don't know how." Thorunn advised, warmth rising to her face as Hiccup smiled down at her.

"It's fine, I'll try to show you." Hiccup murmured quietly to the girl before the vikings who were playing the music decided to change it to a slower beat.

"Thanks, lads. Had to give my gift to the chief in training." Gobber said with a smile as they listened to his request, going off to go continue on with the merriment.

"Just, put your hands around my neck." Hiccup explained quietly, taking one of Thorunn's hand to lead her and smiling when she followed with the other. He knew he was going to be torturing himself doing this with her, but he couldn't stand having her feel left out and lonely. Even if it meant he was going to be fighting his every urge telling him to scoop her up and ravish those pretty little lips that were now smiling at him.

"Hiccup...thank you." He raised an eyebrow at her words, confused since he'd done nothing for her yet tonight that he knew of.

"For what? I haven't done anything." Hiccup advised as his hands moved down towards her hips, leading her in to the slow beat of the music that was playing.

"For being here. For trying to make sure that I have a good time tonight." Thorunn murmured as she moved with him, leaning her head against his shoulder out of reflex as the man in front of her felt heat rise to his face at how perfect it felt to hold her like this.

"You deserve to have a good night, Thorunn. I've barely seen you in the past few days, I feel bad for that." Hiccup muttered before remembering he had a gift he wanted to give to her as well, which took forever just to get it perfect.

Dusk carefully lifted the package into her mouth, trying not to drool on it since she knew that Thorunn wouldn't like that if she did, trotting over to the table where she had been sitting with her male. She didn't see why they don't just make it official and become mates already. They shared a bed together, they obviously restrained themselves around one another. They should just give in already.

Dropping the package carefully in Hiccup's seat, Dusk gave a look in the direction of where they were still doing what she heard the other humans refer to as dancing. She would try it with Toothless, if just to see what was so special about it.

As if on cue, she felt warm breath flow across her neck, leaning back with a purr into Toothless as he wrapped his wing over his mate. Looking back at the male, she saw he was holding something in his mouth. Before she could question, the male dropped a few fresh fish in front of her.

Toothless grinned at his mate, knowing she absolutely loved fresh snapper. He wanted to shower her with more gifts, but that could wait until all the humans went to bed.

Right now, he knew she was set on trying to give their two riders a night that they'll never forget.

Thorunn finally decided to lead Hiccup back to the table upon watching him almost slip twice due to his prosthetic and the fact that people kept spilling their drinks. "I'm sorry, it's harder for me to dance now with this thing." Hiccup muttered, kicking his prosthetic against the table in annoyance at the metal.

Thorunn frowned before picking up the box Dusk had obviously moved over towards them, deciding to give him his gift now. "Here, Hiccup." Thorunn murmured, handing the box to the surprised teen. He wasn't expecting anything from her. He thought her dinner and hot bath treatment a few days was all she had planned.

"Thorunn, you didn't have..." She cut him off by forcing him to sit down and open the box, sitting down beside him this time as Dusk and Toothless sat nearby to watch the two.

Hiccup hesitated, before reaching over and retrieving the gift he had made for Thorunn, handing it to her first. "I'd kind of like to see you open yours first." Hiccup advised, smiling when he saw the shocked look on Thorunn's face. She didn't get gifts from anyone, she didn't like taking things or help from anyone. That's why he had to hide that so hard, especially when she almost found it last night while cleaning up his desk for him.

"Hiccup...is this why you've been gone so much recently?" Thorunn asked quietly, since knowing him he liked to make things himself, not buy it.

"Kind of. Go on, open it." Hiccup said as he motioned towards the box for her, hoping she liked it since it took him forever to make it just right.

Thorunn looked between Hiccup and the box for a second before untying the bow he had in place, carefully opening it as he watched in anticipation for her reaction. A smile grew on his face when he saw the reaction he was hoping for.

Thorunn's eyes widened as she pulled out the vest in the box. It was an improved flight vest, but this one had the wings attached to shackles that she could only guess went down on her boots to improve the area of the wings so she could move faster and more easily.

She felt her heart beating harder against her chest as she examined it, finding something new as she continued looking. He put pouches, and extra buckles, he...he perfected her idea. For her. For a gift for her.

Hiccup's smile only grew as she continued looking, waiting to see if she could look inside the pocket in the front to find his other gift for her. Instead, she threw herself into his arms again, letting him hear that giggle that could make even his worst day the best.

"Thank you. Thank you, thank you, thank you." Hiccup felt his chest swell with pride over making her so happy for once. He wanted her to be the happiest girl in the world, and if he had a part of that, then he was just as happy as her.

"Hey, you've been saying how you wanted to work on it. Well, now you've got your perfect flight suit to go flying with Dusk. And...maybe me." Hiccup murmured the last part, knowing that he wasn't as skilled at using the vest she gave him, but still loving it every chance he got to go out with her to fly with the vests.

Thorunn smiled at him in response to his question, before leaning up, lips pressing against his stubbly jaw line as a thank you for the gift. It lasted maybe a few seconds, but she felt a fuzzy warmth rise in her at the feel of this gesture that she'd never done with anyone else.

She knew that Astrid and Ruffnut said that it was considered suggestive, and that she couldn't kiss him anywhere else than on his jaw, but for some reason she wanted more. Especially when she felt a rumble start in Hiccup's chest at the feel of her lips on his skin.

She'd never kissed anyone else before, didn't really know how to, but she pushed the thought away as she pulled back to let Hiccup open his gift.

He hadn't even realized that his eyes had closed when her soft lips met his jaw. He got caught up in it, wondering what it would feel like to have those lips on his own instead. He almost went in to see for himself, but she pulled away, leaving him wanting more of her as she got further away.

"Open yours." Thorunn said as she motioned towards the box that was still on his lap. He had given her such an amazing gift, she wanted to return the favor.

Hiccup hesitated for a second. He wanted her to find his other gift for her in the pocket, but obviously she wanted him to open his gift right away. Pulling off the ribbon she had put on the box, Hiccup looked up at her once more before opening the box.

His eyes widened at what he saw in the box. She'd never even looked at his original, but she had made him a new prosthetic, a better one. Lifting the metal contraption out of the box, he felt the bottom of it, realizing she made the base of the foot to ensure he didn't slip and fall as much as he did now with his current one.

The bindings were stronger leather now, and there was a better cuff to go over his stump perfectly now as apposed to the loose fit on his current prosthetic. He couldn't figure out how she knew to make this so perfectly. He never took his prosthetic off in front of her, or even let her look at the stump when he took it off the other night while they were in bed.

"Thorunn...how..." He was at a loss for words. He couldn't figure out how she was able to do this for him. The next thing he noticed then was how the metal was detachable, a strong pin holding it in place. She made it so if he wanted, he could switch it out and still have the cuff and bindings.

"I asked Gobber. You've never let me look down there, but Gobber gave me the basic gist on how to make the cuff right." Thorunn explained as Hiccup looked down at the new prosthetic, then back up at her once more. "I figured, you were due for a new one. What with that one squeaking and you slipping all the time." Thorunn finished as Hiccup's eyes locked with her, showing how shocked he was that she managed to make this for him.

He didn't know how to thank her. No one had ever done something like this for him before.

Dusk purred as she watched Hiccup pull Thorunn in to his arms, nuzzling up against her own mate at the sweet scene. Thorunn had worked basically nonstop on that contraption for Hiccup, and obviously he loved it as much as she hoped he would.

Thorunn smiled into Hiccup's shoulder when he pulled her in to hug her for what she had done for him. She was expecting a simple thank you, but this...this was good too. She pulled her face out of his shoulder after a few seconds, looking up as their eyes locked.

There was that feeling again. That warmth bubbling up in her chest. Telling her to stay near him, to try to make him happier than he already was. Then there was that want. To try what Astrid and Ruffnut had discussed with her but she had never experienced herself before. To let him kiss her, like Snotlout had tried many times but she avoided.

But...that was if he felt that way about her.

Thorunn felt her heart pound harder as Hiccup leaned down, making her think he maybe heard her thoughts, but instead he reached in to the pocket of the vest on her lap.

Thorunn's eyes watched his hand as he pulled out the small little gift he had hidden in her vest pocket. Her eyes first caught the chain, before watching as a small black trinket emerged attached to the chain. Lifting it slowly in front of them, Hiccup took one of her hands, dropping it in to her open palm.

"It was supposed to be one you would find, but I couldn't wait for you find it yourself." Hiccup murmured as Thorunn looked at the black trinket, realizing it was a Night Fury scale. "Toothless fortunately has tons of those in his bed. Look at the back." Hiccup pointed to the scale, nervous now that she actually was about to see what he'd done for her.

Thorunn looked between Hiccup and the scale, wondering what it was he had done. Before she had a chance to look though, someone forced them apart, looking up to see some of the vikings from the wedding tomorrow had arrived to ask for his blessing.

Thorunn didn't get a chance to even tell them they were busy, since they yanked Hiccup to his feet and dragged him off, leaving her looking down at the scale in silence.

Thorunn sighed, looking over to where Hiccup now was being forced to give blessings, before standing up. Sometimes she really hated the other vikings in the village. Not one night could she be alone with Hiccup for more than twenty minutes.

"Dusk, watch him with Toothless. I'm going home." Thorunn called to the dragons, placing Hiccup's prosthetic on the table before turning to leave.

Dusk looked between the two humans, whimpering to Toothless since she couldn't let Thorunn walk home in the snow alone. The girl was barely covered. She'd get frostbite. Toothless nodded before letting Dusk dash off after Thorunn.

Thorunn shivered as she shoved the door open and silently slipped out, wrapping her arms around her torso to try to keep warm before pulling on the vest Hiccup had given her, that giving little shelter against the elements though.

Thorunn barely stepped down the first step when a wing wrapped around her, smiling at how Dusk shirked her own job just to make sure she didn't freeze in the snow. "I would be mad that you didn't listen, if not for the fact that I'm freezing." Thorunn murmured to the dragon before they began to walk towards the house slowly, Thorunn idly playing with the scale between her fingers as she wondered if she should look at what he had done, or wait for Hiccup to come home to look.

Hiccup finally got the soon to be newly weds to leave him alone, giving his blessing like they wanted and then explaining he had his own family to return to. He grabbed a drink to bring back to her, only to get halfway there and see she was gone.

Where did she go? He was only gone for about fifteen minutes. Did she look at the back of the scale? Is that why she left? His gift from her was still on the table, and Toothless was nearby watching him. But Dusk wasn't with him this time.

"Toothless, where's Thorunn and Dusk?" Hiccup called to his dragon, watching as the Night Fury jumped up and trot over to him.

Toothless nodded in the direction of the door, Hiccup's heart sinking since while Toothless couldn't speak, he knew that meant she had gone home. In the snow with that dress. That must be why Dusk went with her, since she would freeze out there in that dress she was wearing.

Great, what was meant to be a very important moment was ruined by work. Again.

Hiccup slammed the mug he had been preparing to bring to Thorunn down on the table, sitting down with a sigh before his eyes caught on something on the gift in front of him on the table.

He hadn't seen it before, he was more focused on Thorunn than he was the new prosthetic. In the side of the metal, she had engraved something, so small he had to look really close just to tell what it was. Upon catching the miniscule design finally, his eyes widened.

Thorunn sighed as she hung her dress downstairs, knowing she was going to have to put it right back on tomorrow anyways. Tomorrow was going to be a long day. She didn't understand what the point of it was really. It's just two vikings. It's not like the chief or one of his family getting married. Then she would have understood more about the huge party.

Dusk nudged Thorunn gently, reminding her that she needed to get dressed since it was chilly in the house. Thorunn nodded before following her upstairs to get her night clothes. Hiccup and Stoick wouldn't be back for a while, more than likely. That party was still in full swing when she left.

Tonight she probably won't even see Hiccup before she falls asleep, she'll probably just wake up in the morning to an empty space beside her since he'll be busy all day tomorrow too.

Thorunn frowned as she pulled her shirt on, sitting on the edge of the bed as she ran her fingers over the scale on the necklace Hiccup had given her. She put it around her neck, but she still hasn't looked at the back like he told her to. She didn't know if she wanted to even, mainly because Hiccup seemed more focused on the other villagers.

Even if she had etched that special design into the metal of his new prosthetic.

"Come on, Dusk. Let's go to bed." Thorunn muttered in defeat, standing up to turn the light out before laying down in the cold bed, feeling lonely once more even if Dusk was on the other side of the room in her own bed, wishing her own mate was there with her.

Later that night, Hiccup finally stumbled up the stairs tiredly, having wanted to leave hours ago but no one willing to let him. Toothless had been back here for a while, but he couldn't leave to be with the girl of his dreams?

Walking in to his room, all he could hear was Toothless and Dusk grumbling and snoring, letting him know that they were asleep. Unfortunately, he couldn't see too well to know if Thorunn was as well, but seeing as how it's so late she probably is.

Great, just great. Now he'll have to wait until tomorrow.

Deciding to stop moping, Hiccup shrugged off his vest and crawled in beside Thorunn, resisting his every urge that told him to hold her as he laid down to follow her to sleep.

Tomorrow is going to be a busy day.

"Stop squirming so much!" Astrid snapped at Thorunn as she stood behind the girl, trying to fix her hair for her since it kept coming undone every so often.

"Then leave me hair alone! We're on a windy island, it's no use at this point!" Thorunn protested in response, looking around at the crowd in the area. The ceremony was starting soon. Everyone was standing around waiting, and here she was getting her hair fixed by Astrid. Again.

"It will look nice, Thorunn. We're supposed to look nicer for this kind of stuff." Astrid reminded Thorunn, patting her on the shoulder when she finally finished putting most of the girl's hair up into a bun, leaving a few curls to fall beside her face.

"I still don't see why we need to, I mean its not like it's one of our weddings." Thorunn replied as she stepped back from Astrid, looking to her side where Dusk was sitting with Toothless, the dragons talking amongst themselves as she saw her Boneknappers clear across the area.

"Well, you might want to look nice for a certain someone." Astrid said, not saying exactly who since Thorunn hasn't willingly come out and said she was in to Hiccup, but Astrid had walked into the blacksmith when she was working on the pattern on his prosthetic.

"Who? No one in this village is interested in me." Thorunn reminded Astrid, oblivious of the look she got for believing that since nearly every one of the villagers could see that Hiccup was head over heels for her, and she just as much.

"It's going to be starting soon, try not to mess your hair up this time." Astrid advised Thorunn before heading off to search for wherever Ruffnut was hiding, since the other blonde was trying to get out of having to have her hair done for the wedding as well.

Thorunn scowled, blowing the curls out of her face as she wished she could cut her hair again. She hated it when hair got in her face, but Astrid wouldn't let her do a thing since she wanted them all to match for this wedding.

A wedding that wasn't even theirs.

"Dusk...have you seen Hiccup yet?" Thorunn called to her dragon, since she hadn't seen the man since the party last night. He came home and came to bed, she knew that much, but he was gone before she even got up that morning. It upset her a bit, since she was hoping to see him before all the chaos that was to come with him and his father blessing the wedding and his father doing the ceremony.

When Dusk shook her head in response to her question, Thorunn frowned deeper, fingers finding the scale that laid across her skin, wanting to be with him since last night was supposed to be a family holiday, and she had none. She was hoping to spend it with him, but he couldn't due to these villagers and their wedding.

She wanted to be mad about this, but how could she be. He wasn't hers. He was the villages.

Thorunn shivered as a gust of wind rushed across her, wishing that these vikings had been smart and decided to hold the ceremony inside where it was warmer. Instead, she was stuck standing outside with the rest of Berk in nothing but a dress.

Dusk shuffled over to Thorunn quickly, wrapping her wing around the poor girl as she knelt down beside the Night Fury, thankful that she had the dragons to keep her warm when she was forced to wear such thin clothing as this.

"Odin's beard, you're freezing half to death out here." Thorunn looked up at his voice, not having expected to see him any time soon but smiling when Hiccup knelt down in front of her.

"Sounded like your father there." Thorunn teased quietly before watching as Hiccup pulled the furs he had draped over his shoulder off, passing them to her to warm her, eyes lingering on the black scale laying across her chest.

"Hush, why would you wear that out here?" Hiccup asked, motioning to the dress and trying to control himself since he needed to be standing in front of the village in minutes. He couldn't run off to shove snow down his undershorts.

"Astrid wanted us all to be dressed up. She's handling it better than I thought she would though." Thorunn murmured as Hiccup leaned forward and pulled the furs tighter around her body, motioning to Dusk to keep her warm.

"I've got to go do this blessing, but when I'm done we're getting you in to something warmer." Hiccup advised Thorunn before standing up to go back to the front of the crowd where his father and the soon to be newly weds were waiting for him.

"That's my boy, isn't the one getting married today but still puts his lass first." Stoick said proudly as Hiccup came to stand beside him, clapping a hand on his sons shoulder and smiling when he didn't put a fight up for how he said that in front of the whole village.

Not as bad as what he's going to end up doing here soon anyways.

The blessings began as Dusk shot a small plasma blast at the ground, swishing her tail around to keep the winds from blowing out the fire so she could keep both herself and Thorunn warm.

"Hey, where'd you get the furs? We didn't get furs." Ruffnut muttered, shivering as she and Astrid came over to the girl and her dragon, Dusk opening her wing to welcome the girls in to the warmth since anyone who was a friend of her rider wasn't allowed to freeze with her around.

Ruffnut sat down beside the dragon, happy for the warmth, but Astrid held back. "Hiccup came around and found me sitting here with Dusk. He wasn't very happy." Thorunn said with a shrug as she motioned to Astrid to join them, Toothless seeing the women from where he stood up near Hiccup and abandoning his rider to go help the woman.

A dragon can't leave his mate in need, and obviously she couldn't keep three woman and herself warm without some help.

"Well, the blessing's almost over. Then starts the ceremony." Astrid explained, sighing since she couldn't help but think of the day when this would be her up there, still unsure of who it could be since most of the men on Berk were idiots.

"Thank Thor." Ruffnut commented, Thorunn snickering since she couldn't help but agree.

"I think Hiccup might steal me away for a bit. He said he wants me out of this dress and into something warmer." Thorunn advised, confused when Ruffnut burst into laughter over her phrasing.

"Ruffnut, shush!" Astrid chastised the blonde, slapping a hand over her mouth since they were causing a scene with how loud they were being.

"Um...I'd like to say something before the ceremony begins." The three girls looked up upon hearing Hiccup's voice, since he wasn't supposed to speak. It was supposed to be just Stoick.

"What's he doing?" Ruffnut asked, looking to Thorunn for the answer since she lived with him, but she was just as in the dark about his intentions.

Hiccup took a deep breath, remembering the pattern on his prosthetic he was wearing and what he had etched onto the scale on Thorunn's necklace, gathering his courage.

All he could hope was that he wasn't screwing things up by doing this.

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**I swear, this is the last time I do a cliffhanger for a while. Just, this one couldn't be helped. Had to split the chapter so it didn't get too long. Either way, this was up there in my favorite chapters to write. Anyways, I hope you all enjoyed as much as I did writing it. Remember, once we get to 20 reviews, it's a double chapter day.**

**Even if I've only got the next chapter written and none else. I really need to kick myself to keep writing.**

**Also, I noticed there was a comment about this hitting the M rating. Keep in mind, these characters are 17 and older. It's to be expected. This point, I'm actually considering changing the rating just to ensure that I don't get anyone angry.**

**Though, that's really up to you readers since I'm still only about a third of the way through chapter 21.**

**Well, be sure to give me your opinion, because otherwise I might just bump it to M so as to not cause any issues. Thanks again for reading, love to hear more from you all in your reviews!**


	20. Confessions

**Greetings once again loyal readers! I know, we hit twenty reviews and I didn't do a double chapter. The reason for that was because after this chapter I need to start writing again. Fallen behind due to being busy, I apologize.**

**Anyways, here's the chapter you've all been waiting for! Enjoy and don't forget to review!**

* * *

Breathe, just breathe. Getting nervous and panicking now about what could happen helps no one. His eyes searched for her through the crowd, but he couldn't see her with all the taller vikings in the way. She was probably still huddled with Dusk anyways.

Stoick noticed his boy's nervousness, already knowing what it was about though. He may not talk with his son often, but he did see the boy drawing a picture in the snow earlier that looked a lot like their house guest. Deciding to try to help him, since he's never had to do this before, Stoick stepped forward. "Might we have Thorunn up here for a moment? We'll continue this after." Stoick explained before turning back to his son.

"Thanks...dad." Hiccup muttered, running his hands through his hair nervously before noticing his father's proud smile.

"You've finally got the backbone to make her yours, ay son?" Stoick asked, smile growing when his son nodded his head, unsure still how to do it but knowing he wanted to in front of the village. He wanted her to know how he felt and the village to know she was the woman of his dreams.

"I...I don't know how to Dad. I know I want to tell her...but I don't want to ruin things if she doesn't feel the same." Hiccup mumbled, running his hands through his hair again before his father took him by the shoulders to steady him.

"What's going on?" The two men looked up at her voice, looking over to see Thorunn standing off to the side of the platform they were on with Dusk beside her, wings wrapped around her to keep her warm.

She didn't understand why Hiccup was so nervous. He had nothing to do with this wedding, but yet he looked like he thought he was the one up there joining the two vikings.

"Hiccup wants to speak with you, lass. When you're ready." Stoick whispered the last part to his son before going to apologize to the two waiting villagers who were to be wed that day.

"What's wrong?" Thorunn asked as she walked up to Hiccup, seeing his nervousness fade after each step towards him. She had never seen him like this. It was confusing her and making her worry at the same time that something bad was going to happen.

"Have you looked at the back of the scale yet?" Hiccup asked, looking down at the scale he had attached to Thorunn's necklace for her. When she shook her head, he stopped her hand from taking the necklace.

"What's going on, Hiccup? What's on the scale?" Thorunn asked, looking down at his hand that halted her from looking at what was on the back of the scale.

Motioning to her to wait, he decided that it was now or never, stepping back in front of the crowd as he took a deep breath.

"I made a special gift this Snoggletog for someone. I gave it to her last night, but she hasn't been able to look at it yet. Thorunn." Hiccup turned back to her, heart pounding against his chest as their eyes locked. Motioning for her to look at the back of the scale now, he waited for her reaction.

The crowd was silent now, some unsure of what was going on while others who had seen them more often were silently waiting for what they had been waiting months to happen.

Her heart was racing. She didn't know what was going on. There was a look in his eyes she had never seen before. It comforted her and made her more nervous at the same time. Hiccup motioned to her to look at the scale, and she hesitated for a moment due to being put on the spot. After a moment, her hand slowly reached up to look at the scale.

On the back of the scale, there was white paint filling in the words and design that Hiccup had put on to the scale for her. A heart was along the outside of the scale, before her eyes fell on the words inside of it.

_Thorunn The Dragon Master_

_Master Of The Skies_

_Owner Of Hiccup Haddock's Heart_

Her eyes were wide in shock. Her heart was pounding so hard she could hear it herself and everything sounded muffled around her. Her eyes were locked on those words. She...had his heart?

Thorunn looked up finally when his voice called to her, seeing a worried look in his handsome green eyes for a second before he took a step towards her.

"I've known this woman for eight months now, and last night I gave her this necklace to show her that I'm done hiding how I feel. Thorunn, you may drive me crazy with how you run off at times or when you come home with an injury, but I can't keep hiding anymore." Hiccup explained, eyes locked on Thorunn even though he was announcing this to the whole village.

Her mouth was dry, she couldn't speak. She was hanging on his every word because no other man has ever talked to her like this, make her pulse race and heart flutter with this feeling.

He was in front of her now, so close that she could feel his warm breath against her face. "I've been falling more and more for you these past eight months, but these two months you've been living with me, I cant hold back anymore. I want you to be mine, Thorunn. I need you to be mine." Hiccup murmured, but the villagers could still hear him. Reaching out, he cupped Thorunn's face in his hands, smiling when he felt her relax into his touch.

The villagers were now in a quiet uproar, wondering if Thorunn was going to accept their chief in training. He was pouring his heart out to everyone for her.

"Please, Thorunn it's been torture seeing you and knowing I can't call you mine, or hold you in my arms just to hold you. I know you must feel something too, since you etched this heart into the metal on my prosthetic." Hiccup murmured, pointing down to the metal attached to his leg even though you had to look up close to see it.

The crowd began to grow louder now as Thorunn remained silent. Hiccup was beginning to loose hope even, when he remembered she never had anything like this happen to her before. Poor thing, and he did this in front of the whole village to make things worse.

He was about to lead her away, when Thorunn leaned forward, face nuzzling into his neck as his eyes widened, grin making its way onto his lips as her arms wrapped around his neck, slipping his own around waist and pulling her tight into his body as the villagers erupted, applause and cheers over how their young Hiccup finally found himself a proper woman.

"Alright, alright. I know, this is a big day for all of us. But now, let's start this wedding ceremony." Stoick interrupted the applause, motioning everyone back to their seats when they tried to interrupt his son and his lass.

"Gods, you're ice cold. Come on, you need to get some warmer clothes." Hiccup murmured after they parted, wanting to kiss Thorunn right then but knowing he couldn't let her get frostbite.

"Kiss, kiss, kiss!" Both of their eyes widened as they heard the villagers begin chanting to them instead of focusing on the fact that a wedding was about to take place.

Hiccup looked down at Thorunn, surprised when she buried her face in his chest. She was beginning to shake. He couldn't tell if it was from nervousness now, or just the fact that she's freezing. "I'm sorry, but I've got to get her home. She's freezing out here." Hiccup called to the villagers before motioning to Dusk and Toothless to come help him, pulling his vest off quickly to wrap it around Thorunn.

Dusk quickly dashed over, wings flicking open to cover her rider from the elements as Hiccup began to lead the way out of the crowd, holding Thorunn's hand as he led her.

"Well, I won. He broke today, not at midnight." Ruffnut reminded Astrid, smirking triumphantly even though she didn't win anything, just the idea of knowing she was right.

"Well, at least he lasted longer than Snotlout." Astrid said with a shrug before the ceremony began, the two focusing on Stoick as he began to speak with the couple up at the front of the crowd.

Toothless shoved the door open quickly, rushing in and lighting the fire pit so the house could warm up faster, turning back towards the door when Hiccup came in with Thorunn and Dusk behind him. Sitting the girl down by the fire, he went to go get her something warmer to wear.

Thorunn, instead of sitting by the fire, followed up the stairs to make sure he didn't grab something too big for her. She found him looking through the trunk at the end of his bed that he had gotten for her stuff, walking over to help. "Thorunn, you're like ice. You should be by the fire." Hiccup reminded as Thorunn knelt down next to him to

"I'm fine for right now, Hiccup." Thorunn advised, leaning over the trunk to pull out her heavier clothing, not knowing that it was like torture to Hiccup. She yelped when his hands caught her hips and pulled her back down onto the floor. "What was that for? I was just getting my heavier clothes." Thorunn said as she held up her fur pants for emphasis.

"Don't...do what you were just doing while wearing that." Hiccup murmured, unsure exactly how to explain this to someone who had no idea whatsoever how to handle romantic relationships, let alone how by bending over in front of him while in that skin tight dress it was torture to him. She gave him a confused look before grabbing her shirt to change as well.

"I have no idea what you're talking about, Hiccup." Thorunn murmured, before Hiccup's eyes widened as she began to change right there.

"Thorunn, you're not supposed to do that in front of me!" Hiccup yelled before jumping up and running out of the room, ignoring Thorunn's laughter as he barreled down the steps.

Thorunn came back down a little while later to find Hiccup sitting by the fire with the dragons waiting for her. He looked up, watching as she came over and sat down next to him. "I thought you were going to go back to the ceremony." Thorunn murmured as Hiccup grabbed the fur blanket he had behind him, laying it down beside the fire so they could just lay back and warm up.

"I only needed to be there for the blessings. My Dad's the one doing the ceremony. Come here, you're still ice cold." Hiccup said before taking Thorunn's hand to have her lay back on the blanket, laying down as well.

Hiccup was enjoying the warmth when he felt Thorunn snuggle up into his side, grin breaking out across his face at how she willingly moved into his side. He could feel her body shudder, immediately scooting over to get his arms around her and warm her better.

"Thorunn, you know how to snuggle right?" Hiccup asked quietly as she continued to shiver every once in a while, knowing she would nuzzle his stubble sometimes at night but he didn't know if she knew how to actually snuggle up to someone properly to keep warm.

"I'm not that out of tune with human interaction, Hiccup." Thorunn replied, sitting up when Hiccup motioned for her to move. He had her lay down facing the fire instead this time, grabbing another blanket while he was up before laying down behind her, pulling the blanket over them before wrapping his arm around her to keep her warm.

"If you get sick from today, you'll never wear that dress again." Hiccup advised the girl, even though he knew he would love it if she kept wearing it.

"Oh don't act like you didn't love it. Ruffnut told me that you were enjoying it in a special way last night." Thorunn revealed, smirking when she felt Hiccup's body stiffen behind her. "What did she mean by special way, Hiccup?" Thorunn asked, turning her head to look at him and giggling when she saw his face was red.

"Let's not talk about this right now, please." Hiccup diverted quickly, since he was not in the best position at the moment to be discussing things like this with her. Her hand reached up, gracing his red cheeks as his own eyes dipped from her own to her lips instead.

This was one of the things he always wanted. To snuggle with Thorunn by the fire. To be alone with her, well sort of. Dusk and Toothless were snuggling on the other side of the fire, but they were focused on each other like he was focused on Thorunn.

More so, right now he really just wanted to kiss Thorunn. He wanted to seal that they were together now, and finally show her just how much he cared about her.

Thorunn had closed her eyes, enjoying the warmth of the fire and the warmth of Hiccup's body behind her, when she felt his fingers nudge her hip, opening one eye to see him looking down at her. "Thorunn...have you ever...kissed anyone?" Hiccup asked carefully, surprising Thorunn since they had been laying back and enjoying the fire one moment, and now he was asking that.

She knew he had kissed Astrid, she saw it first hand. Snotlout tried a few times to get her to kiss him, but it never worked. She never felt that electric spark across her skin from his touch like she does with Hiccup. He didn't give a warm flutter in her chest like Hiccup.

When Thorunn shook her head, he let out a little sigh. He was kind of happy with her answer, since he didn't want to hear that she kissed his cousin, before nervousness set in again. He...he could be her first kiss. He wanted it to be perfect if it were her first.

Thorunn scooted back more into Hiccup's embrace upon feeling his arms tighten around her waist, surprised when she felt his lips meet her temple. There was that spark again. That feeling that made her want more. Turning her head to look at the man who just a little over an hour ago poured his heart out to her, she reached her hand up, fingertips running through the stubble on his jawline.

Hiccup looked at her with a smile as her fingertips traced over his beard, knowing she liked it but right now she was just playing with it. He let out a content sigh as she just examined his face, not minding since he spent a few nights just watching her peaceful body as she slept beside him.

His eyes slid shut as he felt Thorunn's fingertips continue to move across his skin, before snapping open when he felt her nearing his lips. Looking at her eyes, her own were on his lips. She wanted him to kiss her?

"You know...if you want me to..." Hiccup trailed off as Thorunn leaned into him more, eyes locking with his own to give him a view of those beautiful green eyes that he literally fell out of a tree for months ago.

And now, he was laying here with her in his arms wanting to kiss her.

Her lips met his jaw again, but this time he couldn't resist anymore.

Slipping his hand under her cheek, Hiccup lead Thorunn up to look him in the eyes. She smiled at him before pressing her forehead to his own. He could feel her heart beating against him, and their eyes met once more as he realized she was giving him any chance to kiss her whenever he wanted.

He just hopes he makes it perfect for her.

Gently curling his hand under her chin, Hiccup leaned down and pressed his lips to Thorunn's, eyes shutting as the sensation tried to overwhelm him. There was always that spark when they touched, but this was like roaring fire. It felt like fire ignited as he met her soft, sweet lips and he couldn't pull away. He wanted more, this was something he never felt with Astrid.

His arms wrapped around her waist, pulling her tighter to him to try to ensure that this didn't end. He wanted to stay like this with her, show her how much he cared about her by continuing this dream of a kiss until they absolutely had to stop.

Thorunn gasped when Hiccup pressed his lips to her own, not thinking he actually was going to do it. She was more surprised though by the feeling. She had never been kissed or kissed anyone else before, so she didn't know what to expect.

But...this was definitely something she would have never expected.

It was like a fire was ignited from the moment their lips met. Both on her lips, and deep in her chest. It was so intense she felt like she would gasp for air. Her hands slid around Hiccup's neck, wanting more and not wanting to part from him.

The book, it said she would feel a spark. But she never thought this was what she meant. This wasn't like a spark. It was more like an explosion. Like a fireball hit her chest and set a never ending fire across her heart. She wanted this to continue, even happier that it was Hiccup who was causing her to feel like this.

Sadly though, they had to part for breath soon, the addicting sensation coming to an end. Hiccup smiled when he saw how adorable Thorunn looked with a blush across her face, before leaning down to continue again now that they had a second's break.

Toothless rolled his eyes at the two teens as he looked across the fire at where they were. They had been laying their, kissing and giggling for who knows how long, but now they were fast asleep on the floor with the fire and a thin blanket the only thing keeping them warm.

He couldn't help but smile though. He knew he was happy to be snuggling with his own mate. But he's had Dusk as his mate for much longer than Hiccup has had Thorunn. They were out of that newer phase. Well, sort of. If only Dusk would let him consummate with her, then they would be.

Well, Hiccup shouldn't have much to protest about now about them getting more personal up in their bed, since now he had his own mate to keep happy and focus his full attention on.

Thinking on that, Toothless nudged Dusk once before starting towards the stairs, shooting her a suggestive look before creeping up the stairs, his mate following behind him not long after.

Stoick bid the newly weds goodbye finally, deciding that before the party they would be having afterward he would go home to check on his son and how he was doing with his own lass. His chest swelled with pride over how he was so willing to announce to their whole tribe that he wanted no one else but her.

He knew that things wouldn't last with Astrid from the beginning. She was just too brash and temperamental. Where as Thorunn, she was logical. She thought first, then acted. Like his son. That, and he's seen her devious side. They're a perfect match. He never thought he'd see the day when his son finally grew a backbone and took a girl for himself though.

Walking up to the house, the old chief couldn't help but grin at wondering if this would be the girl he permanently made his like he had made Valka his own. Granted, they were a bit older. But still.

Stoick walked inside and immediately noticed the warmth, turning to the fire only for his grin to grow at the sight of his boy laying with his lass by the fire keeping her warm.

"Sly little dragon." Stoick mumbled to himself in pride before passing them quietly to go change out of his ceremony clothes to be ready for the party that would be taking place soon at the Great Hall.

Hiccup woke a few minutes later to the feel of Thorunn shifting against him, letting out a soft sigh as he cracked an eye open to look at his new girlfriend.

Gods, he couldn't get used to that ever. It was like a blessing from the gods.

Her face was nuzzled into his neck, arms wrapped around his abdomen as he realized she was beginning to wake up herself. He smiled before moving his head to kiss her forehead, enjoying the warmth of having her snuggled against her body.

"Mmm...Hiccup?" He smiled against her forehead when she mumbled his name, loving the sound of her sleepy voice almost as much as when she was wide awake talking with him.

"Sleep well?" Hiccup asked quietly as her sleepy green eyes flickered up to meet his own, smiling at him before laying her head down on his shoulder.

"Maybe. How about you?" Thorunn asked in response as she looked up into the eyes of her boyfriend who was holding her. She loved the sound of that. Hiccup Haddock, her boyfriend. It was like a dream to her, and she was going to wake up any moment back in bed with him gone.

But no, here he was when she woke up. Laying beside her with his arms around her.

"Much better with you here." Hiccup murmured quietly before pressing his lips to Thorunn's forehead again, not wanting to part ever. This was like paradise to him, lying beside the fire with her against his side.

"Well, I see this day's been good for everyone." Hiccup nearly jumped up at his father's voice, looking back to see him standing over near the door to his room, a smile on his face as he looked at the two teens. Thorunn pulled out of Hiccup's grip slowly, sitting up and making him already miss holding her in his arms.

"Why're you home Dad? I thought there was going to be a party after the wedding." Hiccup said as he glanced between his father and his girlfriend. He had no quarrel with the big chief being home, but he didn't want him to make his girlfriend feel uncomfortable with laying down with him.

"I decided to change first before the party. Can't be wearing ceremony tunics and robes like they're every day clothes. But you two...should I be telling the villagers not to be expecting you? You looked very happy there by the fire when I came in, son." Stoick said as he held a knowing smile for his son, knowing that it was probably his idea that they lay down beside the fire together.

He never even saw Hiccup do anything like that with Astrid. He saw the rare kisses on the cheek or hugs, but other than that she kept away.

But Thorunn, he just didn't seem to want to keep his hands off of her. The chief just hoped that there wouldn't be little vikings running around the house anytime soon, with how much the boy was enamored by this girl.

"We'll be there sir." Hiccup was surprised by her answer, he thought she would want to stay in the house and keep warm. Stoick too was surprised, but he figured that she'd want to just get the questioning over with, since the poor girl looked terrified earlier being put on the spot in front of the whole village.

"Well, I'll see you two there then. I should go before Gobber tries to drink all the mead." Stoick said before passing by the two children, sending a knowing smile towards his son before he was gone.

"Are you sure you want to go?" Hiccup asked, catching her hand as he stood up to put more wood on the fire.

"Yes, I don't want to keep you from the village. They'll be expecting you there, as well as me now after your confession in front of the whole village." Thorunn reminded him, giggling as he grinned at the mention of the event.

"They probably wouldn't mind us skipping one party. I don't want you freezing again, Thorunn." Hiccup reminded as he tossed the wood onto the fire, walking back over to his girlfriend and wrapping his arms back around her waist as he stood behind her.

"I'll be fine, Hiccup. I promise." Thorunn assured, leaning back into his chest before leaning up to press her lips to his cheek. "Thank you for helping me warm up though." Thorunn murmured as he smiled down at her.

"Can't have my girlfriend freezing on me before we've even been together for a week." Hiccup mused quietly, leaning down to recapture her lips with his own. He smiled when she sighed into the kiss, holding onto her tighter.

"So, possessive like Zu huh?" Thorunn asked teasingly as they parted, smiling innocently when he glared playfully at her for the comment since he didn't like being compared to the dragon. Pulling out of his grip, she turned to flee up the stairs.

"I am not like Zu!" Hiccup boomed, running after her as she laughed at him, hearing him dash after her before she hit the bedroom, freezing in her steps before Hiccup crashed into her from behind, sending them both tumbling to the floor.

"Ow, so much for that prosthetic keeping you from falling." Thorunn grumbled from beneath Hiccup before he rolled off of her, helping her up before noticing what it was she had stopped for, eyes going wide in horror.

"Toothless! Dusk! Not on our bed!" Hiccup yelled, running over to the two dragons who were on his bed. "Actually, not at all!" Hiccup yelled as he tried to part the two dragons and pull them off his bed before he was traumatized any further.

The two dragons had been stretched out on his bed, Toothless hovering over Dusk's smaller body as he slid his tongue across her scales. They had figured that they would be fine, since when they left the fire downstairs the two teens were sleeping.

But now, they were up and Hiccup was furious.

Toothless grumbled before reluctantly getting off of his mate, stomping over to his own bed as Dusk shot across the room to be with him. They had been on his bed because the cool breeze coming from the window felt nice.

That, and they figured they wouldn't get caught.

"Never in the house, ever!" Toothless rolled his eyes at Hiccup, turning his head and wrapping his tail around himself and Dusk as he went back to snuggling with his mate.

At this rate, if he wasn't going to be getting any further with his mate, then Hiccup will suffer too. He'll teach the human to yell at him for something that they were rightfully allowed to do.

Hiccup sighed as Toothless turned his back to him, turning back to Thorunn as he rubbed the back of his neck in embarrassment. Thorunn had her hand over her mouth, trying not to laugh at the whole situation. When Hiccup shot her a confused look, she finally burst out laughing, sitting on the edge of the bed as she continued.

"How can you possibly find this so funny? They were about to...you know. On our bed!" Hiccup reminded Thorunn, glaring in the direction of the two dragons who had their backs to him for how he yelled at them.

"Hiccup...you've overreacting. It's not that bad. Toothless was just licking her." Thorunn said through her laughter, falling back onto her back as Hiccup stood in front of her, looking down at his girlfriend that was still just laughing at something so serious.

"T...they were going to do...THAT...on the bed we sleep in at night Thorunn! I'm not overreacting, this is serious. I don't think you want to find a dragon egg in the house anytime soon." Hiccup said as he glanced over at the two dragons, glad when they stood up and stomped out of the room.

"I wouldn't mind it. Dusk is happy with Toothless. And he'd probably make a good Daddy. I know if Pythius was old enough, she'd probably would have come home with an egg yesterday." Thorunn said with a shrug before looking up as Hiccup sat down beside her.

"Then we'd have five dragons under one roof. Though, Zu and Pythius run off every morning anyways these days." Hiccup said, looking down to Thorunn since he had been meaning to ask about that since the two Boneknappers slept down in the living room and were gone before they got up.

"They go flying together and eat. When winter comes, I normally have to set up on one island since the cool air drives them crazy. They can't sit still for very long." Thorunn explained, shrugging again since she'd been living with Zu for eight years, and Pythius she'd had since the girl was fresh out of her egg. "It would be nice though, seeing another Night Fury." Thorunn said with a smile at Hiccup, laughing when he gave a horrified since knowing him he was seeing Toothless on top of Dusk again.

"I'm done talking about this." Hiccup advised, standing up as Thorunn continued laughing at him. He was about to walk away, but her hand caught his belt once more, looking down at her as he noticed the innocent smile she held.

"Now, we're together now Hiccup. Let's not start the relationship with you thinking you can just walk away from issues." Thorunn's voice was quiet, but he could tell she was partly messing with him since she had him by the belt once more. Their eyes locked as she stood up, one hand still on his belt.

Yeah, he's going to have to have an awkward talk with her about not doing things like this now that they're together.

"Alright, we better get to that party before my father sends a search party for us then." Hiccup murmured as he tried to pry her hand from the leather around his waist.

"Aww, alright." Thorunn pouted, confusing Hiccup since he knew she wanted to go. A second later though, he saw the devious look in her eyes that he knew meant something bad was gonna happen. "Last one there's a hatchling!" Thorunn announced before taking off running, leaving Hiccup stunned for a second before he took off running after Thorunn.

Stoick smiled as he noticed his son had finally showed up at the party with his own lass, glad he wasn't at home doing things that would lead to him being a grandfather. He did not want that yet, maybe when he was older.

"So, who managed to convince him to grow a backbone?" Gobber asked the chief, mug prosthetic held up to his lips as he was enjoying the drinks.

"Not me. Boy finally got his nerves together himself." Stoick assured his friend, arms folding over his chest proudly since normally if anyone wanted Hiccup to do something, they had to shove him. This time, he fortunately had to sense to do this himself.

"Well, about time. Been eight months, I thought he was going to wait a few years like he did with Astrid." Gobber commented, glancing towards the two teens who were now sitting at a table talking with their friends.

"Dude, I thought she was Snotlout's. I'm so out of the loop." Tuffnut muttered as he sat next to his sister, growling at her when he got a hit on the shoulder for knowing nothing about what was going on with their dragon academy masters.

"Nope, she's Hiccup's now." Ruffnut advised her twin before smirking as she noticed that the man in question was actually staring down his new girlfriend like a lovesick dragon.

Thorunn couldn't help but giggle, they were all sitting at the table but Hiccup was dragged away to get congrats from some of the villagers. Every time she looked his way, she'd notice him looking towards her instead of at the vikings talking to him.

"So, you're happy now that you're with him officially?" Astrid asked the girl, having noticed too the looks that Hiccup was shooting in her direction when he was with the villagers.

It was obvious, they belonged together from the moment they met. She felt bad that she tried to separate them at one point, but happy that they still ended up together.

"Very. I'm sure he is too, since he can't stop looking over here." Thorunn mused, casting her eyes in his direction again only to smile bigger when he instead took a seat next to her, finally free from the group of vikings he had been talking to.

"I'm ecstatic, thank you very much." Hiccup advised, having heard the two girls. Leaning down, he pressed his lips to Thorunn's temple as he slipped his arms around her where they belonged.

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**Finally! I actually was going to have him confess a few chapters back but I held off just for this reason. I hope it came out just right though. I loved writing this chapter the most so far I think. Anyways, thanks for reading! I have to get back to writing so keeping this short.**

**Oh, and in response to TGirl15, I'd love to hear your ideas. Now, I have your idea that you gave me, this story to work on, and I'm beginning to think of even more ideas for stories.**

**Yeah, it seems that with the new movie right around the corner, I'm getting ideas abound for new stories.**

**Gotta finish this first though. Thanks as always for reading everyone, hope you enjoyed and hope to see your reviews!**


	21. Pampering

**Greetings once more readers! I don't have much to say this time, since I need to try to write more. Fallen way behind, so hopefully I'll be able to post tomorrow but I don't know at the moment since I'll have a five year old with me all day today. Anyways, thanks for reading, I'll try to post tomorrow and enjoy.**

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Golden eyes watched the two males run throughout the house, human chasing dragon in anger. This had been going on for about twenty minutes now, and her own human wasn't even there to enjoy it with her. "Toothless!" Dusk grumbled as she heard Hiccup erupt in anger, getting up to go see what the two were up to upstairs.

Walking up the stairs carefully and avoiding the scattered debris on the steps, she peaked into the bedroom to see Hiccup sprawled on the floor and Toothless jumping up and down on his bed, effectively destroying whatever it was that Hiccup had been preparing on there.

"Toothless stop!" Hiccup yelled once more as he jumped up, running over to Toothless to stop him from destroying his hard work.

Dusk grumbled, walking past the two to go sit down in her own bed. These two had been at one another a lot in the few weeks since Hiccup and Thorunn became mates. Though, this only really started after Hiccup separated them when he caught them on his bed. Toothless wasn't too happy about it, and he was more than willing to show it.

Especially right now by ruining Hiccup's attempt of romancing his mate tonight.

The human had set candles up around the room and even spread petals across the bedsheets, obviously planning to try to sweeten up his mate, but when Dusk and Toothless came home to find all this, Toothless began to ruin everything he saw.

Now, she would agree. She wasn't very happy at how Hiccup reacted to their little foreplay on his bed. They still haven't had a chance to do anything together though, this time mainly because Toothless was hell-bent on blocking Hiccup from getting the same with Thorunn.

Even if the dragon didn't know that his trainer wasn't trying to do the same with his own mate.

Dusk growled a warning over to Toothless to stop, letting him know that if he continued he would be sleeping downstairs tonight instead of in bed with her. His ears drooped, but he reluctantly halted his actions and jumped off the bed, head lowered as he walked back over to her and crawled into bed beside her.

Hiccup let out a frustrated groan, glaring angrily at his dragon one last time before shoving the crumpled petals off his bed sheets. The damned dragon just had to ruin everything. He only wanted to do something sweet for Thorunn as a thank you for her leaving a hot bath, fresh clothes and dinner for him last night when he got home from work.

But no, Toothless had to be an unruly dragon and ruin everything. He didn't even do anything to him, but yet he does this. He's _been_ doing this actually. Tonight was the worst though. It began days after they had been together though, because they were walking down the street, he came up behind her to hug her, and instead Toothless swats him into a barrel of fish with his tail.

Damned dragon.

Sighing, Hiccup went to relight the candles and start again. Even if he ruined everything once, it wasn't going to happen again. Thorunn was going to be home soon, so he had to be quick to make sure everything was perfect when she got home.

Thorunn waved goodbye to the girls, watching as they went their own separate ways before going inside, bag hefted over her shoulder with the ingredients to make dinner tonight. She'd been gone most of the day for a girls day, Hiccup being the one who had sent her. She didn't know what he was up to, but she wanted to make it up to him by making a good dinner.

Thorunn walked in to hear silence, closing the door slowly before she felt fingers take her hips, leaning back into his touch since she was so used to his strong, calloused hands by now. "Hiccup, what're you doing?" Thorunn asked, turning her head slightly to catch his handsome green eyes as he began to lead her towards the back room.

"Now is your turn to be pampered, milady." Hiccup purred softly against the shell of her ear, rumbling laugh making her want to just go right upstairs and lay down and snuggle with him more than anything else he more than likely had planned.

He hadn't planned to prepare a hot bath for her, but due to Toothless's interruption he had to do something to distract her for a while so he could finish with the preparations upstairs. He let her soak in the warm water for a little bit before he heard her starting to head upstairs to where he was waiting. "Toothless, you better not do anything." Hiccup warned the dragon quietly before turning his attention to the door as he heard Thorunn reach the door.

Thorunn's eyes widened the moment she opened the door. She knew Hiccup had been planning something, but she didn't know this was it. There were candles lit all over the room, giving it a faint glow. A trail of pink flower petals lead her from the door to the bed where Hiccup was sitting up against the headboard waiting for her, few petals on the bedsheets as well.

"It was a lot nicer earlier before Toothless ruined everything." Hiccup advised in response to her surprised look by his set up.

"What's all this for?" Thorunn asked, smiling when Hiccup leaned over and pulled her onto the bed, quickly pulling the blankets up over her as well.

"For a sweet woman who deserves a night of pampering. You've been taking care of me since you moved in, it's only fair that I pamper you now." Hiccup murmured quietly as he moved to start putting out the candles, knowing Thorunn would probably be exhausted by now.

"Hiccup, you did all of this just for me?" Thorunn asked as she watched the man blow out the candles quickly before laying down with her, letting her curl up into his side.

"I'd have done more, but Toothless apparently doesn't like the idea of us being together." Hiccup revealed, glaring in the direction of the dragon even though it was dark in the room now. He still heard the dragon blow raspberries at him though in response. "You've been doing everything for me, milady. It's only fair if I do the same." Hiccup purred sweetly to Thorunn before pressing his lips to her forehead.

"Oh Hiccup." Thorunn looked up at her gentleman of boyfriend, smiling at him for his sweet ways before leaning up and pressing her lips to his own, smiling when she felt his chest rumble beneath her with a happy chuckle before he kissed her back.

"Never get used to that." Hiccup mused quietly before pulling Thorunn tighter into his side so that they could sleep.

"Thank you, Hiccup." Thorunn murmured into the crook of Hiccup's neck, smiling as she felt his chest rumble again against her with another happy chuckle.

"Anything for you." Hiccup reminded Thorunn before smiling once more as he felt Thorunn settle in to sleep, following suit with a happy smile on his face as he fell asleep.

Hiccup woke up the next morning, reaching over to snuggle up with Thorunn only to find he was alone, eyes shooting open as he sat up to look for his girlfriend.

Upon waking up a bit more, he could hear movement downstairs, getting up to go get Thorunn back to bed with him.

Toothless and Dusk looked up when they heard Hiccup coming down the stairs, looking over to Thorunn for a second before digging right back in to their own breakfast.

Thorunn hummed softly as she finished adding the lamb to the stew, in her own thoughts until she felt warm, strong arms wrap around her from behind, moving back into his arms before turning her head to catch his lips when he tried to kiss her on the cheek.

"Why're you up cooking? I told you I'd take care of you, remember." Hiccup purred quietly as he watched Thorunn go back to stirring the stew, unable to deny that it actually smelled amazing and had his mouth watering.

"Hiccup, you and I both know you can't cook as well as I can." Thorunn reminded the man, smiling back at him as he rolled his eyes at her.

"Ow, my pride." Hiccup held his chest, feigning injury as Thorunn laughed at him for his ways before leaning up and pecking him on the lips.

"Yeah, your pride. Is that what woke me this morning?" Thorunn asked teasingly, laughing when Hiccup went red in the face before fleeing from her to go see what the dragons were up to.

Once he came back, Thorunn handed him his food before going to sit down at the table herself.

Later that day, Hiccup went to the dragon academy to teach some of the kids of the village while Thorunn stayed back at the house, Astrid and Ruffnut coming over to talk with her.

"So, he had everything waiting for you when you got home?" Ruffnut asked as Thorunn looked through her trunk for something, trying to clean the room at the same time since Hiccup had left papers all over his desk that Dusk accidentally sent skittering across the floor with her tail when passing the desk.

"Yeah, he led me to the hot bath, then afterward I came up here and found the trail of flower petals and candles. He said it's only fair he pampers me." Thorunn explained as Astrid and Ruffnut exchanged a look, Ruffnut grinning ear to ear as she prepared to say something to Thorunn but Astrid quickly stopped her.

"Well, what are you going to do for him then? We know you two by now. One of you does something, the other has to do something else." Astrid advised, since it was like a never ending cycle with the two. They couldn't let the other do something for them and just let it slide as a gift.

"I have no idea. I can't just do the same thing for him." Thorunn grumbled, leaning back on her knees as she tried to think of something that Hiccup would like. Right now though, he was pretty content. His flight vest was up to date with her own. They went for night flights once a week with Toothless and Dusk.

Heck, they shared a bed already and they'd only been together for a few weeks.

She had no idea what to give him this time, since she knew he wanted to pamper her but she wanted to prove enough to him that she just wanted to make sure he was happy and comfortable since he worked nearly non-stop all week.

"Well you could always give him a b..." Ruffnut was cut short by Astrid hitting her over the head, knocking her off the bed in the same process.

"Give him what?" Thorunn asked, having been picking up papers and not noticing Ruffnut had been hit until she turned back to see her two friends, one now on the floor holding her head as she glared at the other.

"It's nothing, Thorunn." Astrid assured, stopping Ruffnut when the tomboy tried to tell her what she could give to Hiccup once more.

"Really, what is it?" Thorunn asked once more, since she didn't like not being told what was going on. These two did this far too often for her liking, so she really wanted to know what was going on at this point.

"Thorunn, you really don't need to know what Ruffnut was going to say." Astrid assured once more, turning her attention to Ruffnut though when Thorunn held her questioning look, wanting to know either way even if it was something destructive or bad.

"She's not going to tell you because she thinks you don't know enough about relationships and haven't been with Hiccup long enough." Ruffnut explained to Thorunn, innocent look held towards Astrid when the other temperamental blonde glared at her for telling Thorunn that.

"Hiccup and I have been together for a month now." Thorunn reminded the girls, wondering what they were talking about since she didn't know you had to be together for a certain amount of time to do certain things.

"Which isn't long enough for you to need to know what Ruffnut was talking about." Astrid advised before trying to divert the attention of the rider elsewhere.

"I think she could still know. She might need to, since who knows Hiccup might actually ask for it. I mean, he never asked _you_ but he might her since he's older now." Ruffnut dodged when Astrid threw one of Hiccup's many inventions at her, sticking her tongue out at how the other girl missed.

"Alright, just tell me now what you two are talking about." Thorunn finally demanded, tired of being left out of what the two were talking about.

Astrid and Ruffnut exchanged a look before Ruffnut finally grinned, turning to Thorunn to explain to the inexperienced girl what they had been talking about.

Hiccup sighed, brushing himself off as he walked in the front door. This had not been one of his best training days. It started out nice, but ended horribly when he got thrown from a Gronkle he had been trying to teach the kids about.

It was even worse when he had been thrown into a mud puddle too.

Toothless chortled as he walked in the door behind Hiccup, having been in the arena during the incident but he was eating lunch. So he just looked up in time to see Hiccup get thrown into a mud puddle by a Gronkle.

"You know, you were supposed to be helping me." Hiccup reminded his Night Fury before he heard giggling and moving around upstairs, figuring his girl was upstairs with her own friends.

"Well she deserved to know!" Ruffnut reminded Astrid as she continued laughing at the surprised yet at the same time horrified look that their more innocent friend had dawned upon her explaining what foreplay was to the poor lass.

"Well you didn't need to lie and tell her that he wants that right now!" Astrid snapped back at the tomboy as she stood in front of the still horrified girl.

"He might, we never know he actually might." Ruffnut said with a shrug before the two heard the sound of someone coming up the stairs, glancing to the door to see Hiccup all covered in mud and confused as to what all the noise was about.

"Well, hello ladies." Hiccup said before going to get himself a change of clothes, unaware of Ruffnut trying to hold herself back from bursting out laughing at how he just so happened to show up as they were talking about ideas on how Thorunn could thank him for the night before.

"What happened to you?" Astrid asked, glad he actually came back at this time since hopefully that would end their previous conversation.

"That Gronkle we chose for today's lesson at the academy threw me." Hiccup grumbled before noticing the quiet that had taken place when he walked in, figuring he walked in on their girl time. "I'm going to go clean up and change." Hiccup said before taking his clothes and going back downstairs to wash up.

"Alright, now back to what we were talking about before he interrupted." Ruffnut said once the door closed, excited look in her eyes over getting to further torture both girls in the room.

"She doesn't need to be traumatized anymore Ruffnut!" Astrid snapped at the girl before noticing Thorunn was slowly starting to look less horrified over the earlier discussion.

"Does it...make him happy?" Thorunn asked, head cocked to the side in curiosity since, even if she didn't know about any of the stuff the girls had been telling her, she did want to keep Hiccup happy.

Ruffnut grinned triumphantly at Astrid before returning to their discussion.

Hiccup sighed, running his hands through his damp hair as he walked up the stairs to his bedroom, glad to finally be clean once more before he saw Thorunn sitting alone on their bed, looking in deep thought. "Where's Astrid and Ruffnut?" Hiccup asked curiously as he pulled his shirt on quickly, having thought they were all gone since it was quiet.

"They went to the academy to finish the lessons for today since you got thrown." Thorunn murmured as she watched Hiccup walk over to her and sit beside her on the bed.

"You okay? You look like something is troubling you." Hiccup advised as he watched her fidget nervously, starting to get nervous himself since his girlfriend was so nervous all of a sudden.

"It...it's nothing. Just some girl stuff that we were discussing earlier." Thorunn muttered, eyes falling to the blankets beneath them, looking up when Hiccup's hand caught her chin and made her look up in time to see him dip down and meet her lips with his own.

"If anything's wrong, you know you can just tell me." Hiccup reminded the beautiful girl in front of him before smiling when she leaned forward to hug him.

"I know, it's nothing for you to worry about Hiccup." Thorunn said before watching as her boyfriend pulled away to finish getting dressed, sitting silently as she watched him pull his leather armor on. "You have plans?" Thorunn asked as she watched the man.

"I was hoping we could go flying for a bit." Hiccup said as he went to grab his flight vest, laughing when Thorunn leaped up to grab her own flight vest.

"I'll get Dusk and let you get Toothless." Thorunn said before heading downstairs to retrieve the female from the fire where she was laying with her own mate. "Want to go fly for a bit, girl?" Thorunn asked, smiling when the Night Fury's began to stretch beside the fire.

Before long, they were out and racing through the sky on the Night Fury's, zooming through the stone pillars as the dragons chortled and roared at each other tauntingly, knowing that they could be faster. "Did you fix Toothless's tail before we left so he can fly alone for a bit?" Hiccup called to Thorunn as they spiraled down towards the water.

"You know, you really should make him a permanent replacement, Hiccup. I did, but it's getting a bit old doing this every time." Thorunn mused, sticking her tongue out at the viking when he glared playfully at her.

Before long, they were soaring through the clouds with their dragons twirling and playing below, letting the two humans fly with one another as they paid attention to one another more.

"Hey, you're getting better Hiccup." Thorunn mused as the man spun around her in the clouds, smiling triumphantly at how he was such a quick learner with the flight suit.

"Well, with such a skilled woman as yourself showing me how to use this flight suit, it shouldn't be a surprise." Hiccup replied before diving down, Thorunn diving down after him as their laughter echoed down to the dragons flying below.

Hiccup had been soaring through the clouds in search of his dream girlfriend when suddenly Thorunn dropped on him from above, laughing as they began to fall towards their waiting dragons below.

"Thorunn, don't do that!" Hiccup yelled as they continued to fall, both opening their wings wide to catch the updraft before they could hit the water, evening out quickly.

"Why not? I didn't do it when we were close to the ground at least." Thorunn reminded as she continued laughing at her little prank on the newer flier.

"Well we could have been seriously hurt. I especially don't want you getting hurt again." Hiccup said as he flew beside the girl who seemed to want to live up in the air like the dragons.

"Such a gentleman." Thorunn purred, reaching out for a second to the man before righting herself to ensure she didn't drop.

Before long, they were back on Toothless's back as he soared down towards the cove to drop the teens off.

Toothless trotted over to Dusk after dropping the teens off near the water, grumbling happily when she nuzzled up under his chin.

Hiccup smiled as he watched Thorunn remove her flight vest. She obviously was enjoying that gift more than anything else he had given him. Walking up behind the gorgeous woman, he reached down to help her remove the cuffs that held the wings to her ankles.

"Thank you, my kind sir." Thorunn mused as he helped her, smiling up at him when he finished removing his own flight suit.

"Your welcome, milady." Hiccup returned with a smile as he let her reach up and wrap her arms around his neck in a hug, slipping his own arms around her as she buried her face in his neck.

Hiccup could feel her relax into his grip, enjoying this more than their normal hugs since when they were out here in the cove, they didn't have to worry about anyone walking in and interrupting them with some task that needed to be done.

"Hiccup..." Her voice was soft, almost like she was nervous as he pressed a gentle kiss to her neck, pulling his face back to look at her for the reason why she sounded nervous.

"What's wrong?" Hiccup asked as he looked down at the face that was buried in his neck, nudging her with his nose to try to coax her to look at him.

"I...I'm fine. It's just...I want to thank you...for last night." Thorunn murmured as she watched Hiccup's eyebrows knit together in confusion as to why she would want to do such a thing.

"You don't need to, Thorunn. I did it as a thank you for the night before, so you don't need to do a thing for me." Hiccup reminded the nervous girl, a bit curious as to what it was she wanted to do but deciding it wasn't important since she was so nervous.

"But...I want to thank you." Thorunn advised before leaning up and pressing her lips to Hiccup's, surprising the man before he kissed back.

This was different. This wasn't just a kiss to show him that she cared deeply for him. There was something more behind this one that made him crave more. He pulled Thorunn closer to him as the kiss deepened, Thorunn letting out a little whine as he felt a laugh rumble up from his chest.

He didn't mean to laugh, but he felt her try to pull away a bit after it escaped. Thorunn looked embarrassed, cheeks red as she turned to flee but his arms caught her waist, not wanting to stop just yet as he latched his lips to her neck, wanting to hear that sweet whine of hers again.

Her knees buckled beneath her, Hiccup's arms keeping her from falling as he continued his actions. Slowly, she felt him lower her towards the ground until he was kneeling behind her, lips still caressing her pulse point on her neck as she wondered where he learned such a thing.

He didn't know what compelled him to do this, but with each gasp or while Thorunn would let out the less likely he was to release her from his grip. She was intoxicating to him. The sounds she would make, her voice when she spoke his name, her skin beneath his lips as he continued sucking on the pulse point on her neck until he was sure there was a mark there.

He didn't even know how he knew how to do this, since this was something he'd never tried before. But he figured his body was just reacting before his mind to show him how to keep the woman of his dreams happy.

Hiccup tried to hold his thoughts back as this continued for a while, before he felt nimble fingers tug at his belt, pulling back to see Thorunn had slipped her hand between them and had his belt in between her fingers. "Thorunn, what're you doing?" Hiccup asked carefully as she looked back at him, a longing look in her eyes that he'd never seen before.

Instead of answering, Thorunn leaned back and re-caught his lips with her own. His body seemed to relax more against her as their lips melded together, her fingers searching for the buckle on Hiccup's belt as she tried to ignore the nervous feeling in her stomach over what they were doing.

Hiccup felt a tug at his belt, hand shooting down to stop Thorunn as their lips parted, looking at her in confusion since this woman in front of him was so innocent he knew she couldn't possibly understand what it was she was doing. But instead, he saw the longing look in her eyes once more and that only fueled the fire of want for his girlfriend in front of him.

Her fingers worked to remove his belt slowly as their eyes remained locked. He saw a nervous spark in her eyes as well, before leaning forward to sooth her with another kiss. His own nervousness only rose when he felt the tight leather on his waist go slack as she finally managed to undo the buckle.

Their eyes locked once more as he tried to figure out where this was coming from before he felt her lean more into his body.

But just as soon as he slid his arms around her waist once more, a strong black body slammed into them, throwing the two apart as Hiccup was sent sprawling a few feet away from Thorunn.

Opening his eyes and trying to regain the breath that had been knocked from him with the blow, Hiccup was met with the cocky green eyes of his dragon who had thrown his body into their own to part them. Toothless let out a gurgling laugh before jumping up and down in his spot triumphantly.

Toothless's triumph was cut short when Dusk slammed into him, sending him sprawling as well as she glared at her mate for having knocked down her own rider as well. Leaning down and pulling Thorunn gently to her feet, Dusk purred to the girl to try to show that she was sorry for how Toothless reacted to their actions.

Toothless rolled his eyes, not having meant to slam into Thorunn as well but it was needed to part them. He wasn't about to let these two get any further when Hiccup wouldn't even let him mate with Dusk. It wasn't fair.

"Toothless, you're insane!" Hiccup snapped as he sat up, glaring at his dragon for how he had to be. Why couldn't the dragon just let them be for once. They were enjoying their company together, and then the damned dragon just had to ruin everything.

Toothless mocked his rider instead of being offended by the tone, motioning to Dusk to try to remind him that this was all his fault for yelling at him and Dusk weeks prior.

"Are you okay?" Hiccup asked as he got up, walking over to Thorunn to make sure she was okay. Her eyes fell from his own though, a small giggle escaping her sweet lips as he raised an eyebrow in confusion as to why she was laughing when the jerk of a dragon had knocked them flying.

"I think he thought you had an eel in your pants, Hiccup." His eyes shot down before his hands immediately covered himself, face turning red as Thorunn continued to giggle at his situation. Quickly turning his back to her to redo his belt and hide himself, Thorunn's giggle just continued to make him wish that Toothless would have just minded his own business.

"It's not funny, Thorunn." Hiccup growled finally after redoing the belt on his waist, eyes turned up to the sky as he willed whatever god that was listening to help him with the situation he had been caught in.

"I...I'm sorry. It's just...it's funny. He...he did the same thing you did to him when you made him and Dusk pull apart." Thorunn said through her laughter as Hiccup glared at her once more before turning to escape from the Cove, only getting a few feet before Thorunn's hands caught the back of his belt, stopping him from walking.

"Let go." Hiccup said simply, keeping his eyes ahead instead of on Thorunn since that would help little with his situation.

"I'm not laughing at you Hiccup. I was laughing at how Toothless was reacting. Come on, don't be mad." Thorunn said as she released his belt, giving him room to leave if he really wanted to go. Turning to her dragon instead, Thorunn walked over to Dusk, scratching her chin as thanks for the Night Fury helping her up.

Hiccup sighed before walking back over to Thorunn, arms slipping back around her waist where they belonged. "I'm sorry, I'm just frustrated with how every time we start to get more...you know...he has to go and do something like that." Hiccup muttered as he held his gorgeous girlfriend close, loving the way she relaxed in his grip every time.

"Well, maybe if you didn't yell at him for trying to be closer with Dusk, this wouldn't be happening." Thorunn reminded the man behind her as Dusk nodded her head in agreement.

No one understood them as well as this girl. It was almost as if she could hear the very words they were trying to convey to them. Weeks this had been going on, and this had to be the worse that Toothless had done to the poor couple. All she wanted was for this little feud to end so that they could get back to their own businesses.

But no, Toothless was set on continuing this until Hiccup finally realized what he had done was wrong. So if Toothless couldn't get any further with his mate, then Hiccup would get no further than hugs and kisses as well.

"Thorunn, they can't be doing what they were in our bed. If they want to do stuff like that, then they can come out here or find another bed that we don't sleep in." Hiccup grumbled before Thorunn pulled from his arms, leaving him craving her once more as he reached out to snatch her back into his embrace.

"Then, go apologize to him and don't tell me about this." Thorunn said as she pointed to the now waiting male who was sitting nearby, waiting with a smug smile on his maw. When Hiccup didn't move, Thorunn gave him a nudge in Toothless's direction.

"Wha...no! I shouldn't have to apologize to him! He knocked us over!" Hiccup protested as Thorunn sighed, pinching the bridge of her nose in frustration with her boyfriend.

"Hiccup, just apologize and then we can get back to our lives." Thorunn murmured, hand taking Hiccup's belt once more before she lead him by the leather over towards his waiting Dragon who still held a smug smile on his maw.

Shoulders sagging in defeat, Hiccup reluctantly looked up at his dragon. If he didn't do this now, then the dragon might mess with him again. "Fine. Bud, I'm sorry." Hiccup grumbled, letting out a sigh when Thorunn swatted him on the shoulder.

"Say it again, this time like you mean it." Thorunn advised, standing back with Dusk as the two males stared one another down, the girls watching to see how this will end.

"Toothless, I'm sorry alright." Hiccup muttered, eyes locking with the dragon in front of him as Toothless sat on his hind legs.

The girls watched the two for a few before Toothless leaned forward, nudging Hiccup with his nose as the teen wrapped his arms around the dragons neck, glad to finally have buried the hatchet so that they could both get back to their woman.

"Alright, we're good now." Hiccup said as he walked back over to his girlfriend, arms wrapping around her once more as he leaned down for a kiss.

Dusk nuzzled up to his own mate, unaware of the devious look still held in the male's eyes as he watched the teens.

* * *

**See, I can't not make them suffer at times. It's just too perfect, that and I'm still on the fence about the M rating. Anyways, thanks for reading as always, even though this was a filler chapter since I can't seem to write fast right now.**

**Well, that and last night I suddenly got a new idea for a new story.**

**Either way, I'm going to try to finish this, but I don't know about the every day posts at the moment due to my busy schedule. But thanks as always for reading, and I hope to see your reviews.**


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